SALT LAKE CITY - "Living in the shadows." It’s not the title of a book or a movie; instead, it has become the way of life for some Catholic families in the state of Utah. Maria and Juan Galindo with their six children used to be a family full of joy and enthusiastic parishioners at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church, but not anymore. Not since they learned about a list of 1,300 names of purported illegal immigrants sent anonymously to various law enforcement agencies and news media. Since the list was released in early June, two Department of Workforce Services employees have been accused of distributing the information. They were suspended and the Utah Attorney General’s office has begun an investigation into the matter. When Juan Galindo heard about the list from a friend at work, his body started shaking, he said. The Galindos entered the United States 10 years ago without papers. They first arrived in California, where Juan worked as a waiter and Maria in a sewing factory. One day they received a warning from neighbors about a raid; after discussing what to do, the Galindos decided to move to Utah, which back then seemed to be a friendly and safe state. At the time Maria was pregnant with their second child. "We did not know what else to do," said Juan. "We did not want to go back to Michoacán [México]." After moving to Utah and struggling to find jobs, Juan started to work in a restaurant and then in the construction business as a bricklayer. When he heard about the list everything started coming back. "I started shaking and my eyes were full of tears," Juan said. "When I got home and talked to Maria, we both started crying, and now we are scared that they will take us back and break our family and dreams." Their situation is complicated by the fact that five of their six children were born in the United States and are U.S. citizens. One of the children recently died. "We used to go to church together as a family, and almost every day with my children to pray for our angel," said Maria, "but now we are scared that ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) is going to find us, so we don’t go out anymore." Local priests are offering comfort to people like the Galindos. "The list is against the law," said FatherMichael R. Sciumbato, Our Lady of Guadalupe pastor. "You don’t have to be afraid." Father David Bittmenn from Saint Francis of Assisi Parish in Orem said he has received some calls from parishioners inquiring about the list, and he has told them that it’s very unusual and not something to be afraid of. The list that was mailed contains Social Security numbers, birth dates, workplaces, addresses and phone numbers. Names of children are included, along with due dates of pregnant women. Some of the people on the list are in the country legally. "In the state of Utah we are not investigating the people on the list," said Mark Shurtleff, Utah attorney general. "Our churches are very much present to the people, to talk with them, to comfort them. We are there to advise them any way we can. We want to do everything we can" to help frightened immigrants, said the Most Rev. John C. Wester, bishop of Salt Lake City. ICE won’t confirm whether it has been investigating anyone unless there is some type of action such as an arrest, a spokeswoman said in a press conference. She noted that with limited resources, the agency concentrates its efforts on dangerous criminals, not sweeps or raids that would target undocumented immigrants indiscriminately.
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