If you're not wealthy, you're not welcome in this country. A new change in immigration policy called the public charge rule aims to further restrict immigrants from getting legal status in the US. If there's a chance they'll use public benefits at anytime in the future. it's not something that is necessary for any reason except to cause fear and to discriminate. Although lawsuits nationwide are challenging this Trump administration proposal in the court, a chilling effect has led some legal immigrants to opt out of benefits. They're entitled to because they're scared. We're in the Coachella Valley, which is anonymous for partying and music at their yearly festival, but we are heading to one of the fields where a lot of the immigrant community here has worked for generations. Thank you for talking to me today. This is an undocumented farm worker in her twenties who requested we conceal her identity every day. She works here in these fields picking dates. When did you move to the United States? my parents brought me when I was two years old. So do you. Being in Mexico? No, I don't remember anything I went to school here. I graduated here and I have my daughter and my husband here. My whole life is here and you feel just as American as anybody else. Yes. Tell me about when you graduated from high school. What was your Dream to become a nurse and did you start that process? Yes. I went to College for three years but with the President administration for the public church, will I decided to stop because I don't want to become a public charge like he says, even though technically that actually wouldn't necessarily apply to you. You know that right? Yeah. Well, because he always changes his mind is like. He says that he wanted to remove Daca hard. You pulled your daughter out of her health benefits. Yes, that must have been a really difficult decision. Yeah and most because like two weeks ago I took her to a doctor and he told me that she might have lupus and well. I don't know what am I gonna do and now your daughter doesn't have health insurance. No. And she LUSH citizen. Yeah. Do you see that a lot with parents who are deciding to pull their kids out of their? Health Insurance Yes, so this isn't just you know there's a lot of kids and is it because of the fear? Yes, right now. Applicants for legal status have to prove government assistance won't be their main source of income. The Trump administration wants to greatly expand what's considered benefits, including housing assistance and Medicaid for adults. Jeddah Schwartz is one of the attorneys fighting to prevent this new public charge policy from becoming law. An analysis by the Center for Constitutional Rights estimates. As many as three million people in immigrant families will disenroll or opt out of Medicaid due to fear of being impacted. This rule, even though they keep eligibility that US citizen child is entitled to those benefits, and it should not affect her mom's application for status at all in the future, many many, many more people are withdrawing for benefits or fear that they will lose their chance at status, even though they are not directly affected by the school. And there are lot of people who are watching this thinking. we need to focus on strengthening the country. What would you say to them that they're. Wrong because thanks to us, they get their food in their table. Talk of this public charge rule heated up in August, when the Trump administration announced a renewed enforcement throughout our history, self reliance has been a core principle in America. Trump's top immigration official, Ken Cuccinelli, even added his own amendment to that famous poem on the base of the Statue of Liberty. Give me your tired and your poor who can stand on their own two feet and it will not become a public charge. Right now, I'm heading to the Today Legal Center, which is holding a workshop to educate immigrants here about their rights. This is Luis Gallegos, the community programs director for the Total Legal Center. Ever since the policy was announced, she's been holding these weekly workshops. Public charge is affecting our community tremendously to the point that we have seen legal permanent residents that they're totally except from this rule fear for their safety. Here in the United States, we had a situation last Monday when a mother called me at five in the morning crying that she didn't wanna call the ambulance. she didn't want to call the police. She found her son trying to attempt suicide. When I talk to this young boy, I'm like, why? Why did you do this? He has a Pokémon and basically what he said is I don't have. I know I'm gonna die. I don't want because it means receiving benefits that will affect my parents well being here in this country. They've also been reports that the fear has spread to the public education system. Here we work with the schools that are telling us that you know some of their classrooms are empty because their parents don't. They think a school is a public benefit. Pure has caused some history. It sounds like yes, the fear has caused a lot of confusion with community that they they don't know if they should continue with benefits. Continue sending their kids to school. You lived in this community your entire life. Have you ever seen this? No okay the and the division and everything that comes along with it. I'm sorry. It's just getting. It's just getting really. I don't wanna cry. So let me just calm down a little bit. How do you expect this rule to actually change the landscape of immigration in the United States? The government is deciding that what they're going to do is see if there's possibility anytime in the future you might need Medicaid a possibility anytime in the future you might need food stamps. then they're going to say you could be a public charge and we're gonna deny you status. Typically you have to have been a lawful permanent resident for five years before you're even eligible to access those benefits. So the idea that. Documented people are somehow taking public benefits. It's simply not true. This man worked in these fields for over 40 years. He's a permanent resident with a Green card, yet even he has dropped his benefits. So once you heard about this public charge change in policy, you decided to disenroll from your benefits. He comes at them. es muy triste venir a dejar una vida de este país y no recibir algo de lo que tú cosechas recibir un una ayuda al alcance de tus trabajos Citizens are not benefited by their children going to school with kids who don't have medical care because their parents are fearful that their status will be jeopardized. We do see a better horizon for our communities because we have faith in God and we have faith that the courts will really see the injustice of what this administration plans to cause, and it has caused and will continue cost to our communities. On October eleventh, three federal judges in California, New York and Washington state issued preliminary injunctions. Rarely-used locking the Trump administration from enforcing the rule, but with the government likely to appeal, the fight is far from over, Ken Cuccinelli said in a statement to CNN. Long-standing federal law requires aliens to rely on their own capabilities and the resources of their families, sponsors and private organizations in their communities. To succeed, an objective judiciary will see that this rule lies squarely within Long-held existing law. I'm telling you I feel sorry for have to retire. You know why I have a some many customers. Alex. You'll never retire when they retire. you know. My name is Alex and I fix accordion since 1960 in New York. The people comes from all over the world to fix the cardio cuz they say that the best. I don't know this sometime breaks. You have to change their reliable. I'm the only one in New York to fix a cardio in this moment you know, see I fixed according, and I lost the customer because I fixed it incorrectly. I have this one for a simple ticket cuz this is a very old authorities. At least this, according to 70 - five years old. How old are you? If I tell you won't believe it, you believe it. How would you say if I told you 90 - three, you won't believe it. We working together 60 years since the 1940 - nine. You gotta understand an instrument is like a some part of your life. You you care for the instruments and more than anything else. I love this more than anything else. It's not the money sometimes in life. If you're healthy and happy money, it doesn't count. This is what I believe. Maybe I'm wrong. but now you have all my secrets. It's good. Okay.