This weekend, The Arc (36-35 35th St) in Long Island City is hosting a benefit to bring awareness to the hundreds of families at the United States-Mexico border who remain separated.
Music media company DMNDR and theater group Slightly Altered States will present “Sanctuary” — a benefit from the Immigrant Families Together (IFT) organization — on Saturday, Aug. 4 from 3 to 6 p.m.
According to a spokesperson for the event, five bands are slated to perform at the event: 86 Supreme, Random Access Music, Martin Kelly, HaRi MiNT, and Billy Conahan. There will also be a theatrical adaptation by Slightly Altered States, during which they will incorporate letters that were written by detained immigrants.
Sari Caine, the co-founder of Slightly Altered States and award-winning playwright wrote the adaptation, which uses letters and articles mixed with first-person fictionalized narrative. The piece involves a diverse cast of 17 people, including DACA recipient Sergio Mauritz Ang who came from Manila, Philippines when he was 11 years old.
Thursday, July 26 marked the court-mandated deadline for the Trump administration to reunite the thousands of children separated from their family. But according to Lee Gelernt, deputy director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project, there are still many who have not been brought back together.
“These parents and children have lost valuable time together that can never be replaced, said Gelernt. “We’re thrilled for the families who are finally reunited, but many more remain separated. The Trump administration is trying to sweep them under the rug by unilaterally picking and choosing who is eligible for reunification. We will continue to hold the government accountable and get these families back together.”
The event is free, but donations are welcome and can be made at immigrantfamiliestogeth
