DECORAH -- Steve Jacobson has never been more impressed by his community.

Jacobson is pastor at Decorah's First Lutheran Church, which is part of the Decorah Area Faith Coalition assisting Guatemalans detained after the May federal immigration raid at the Agriprocessors Inc. meatpacking plant in Postville. After being charged with identity theft, they served six-month jail sentences, but must remain in the U.S. because they are material witnesses in the government's labor-abuse case against Agriprocessors.

Nearly 400 illegal workers were arrested during the raid, and about 18 of them have been detained as witnesses.

The kosher meatpacking plant that recently declared bankruptcy and owes money to several local businesses is facing more than 9,000 charges of child labor violations involving 32 minors under the age of 18 and seven who were under the age of 16.

The Faith Coalition, made up of 17 churches in the Decorah area, is sponsoring nine of the Guatemalan witnesses, who were recently welcomed to Decorah with a community potluck. Three of them are staying at the St.

Benedict's Church rectory and six are staying in a rental property near First Lutheran.

"I want to say thank you to the community that's responded with such hospitality and graciousness," Jacobson said. "The Guatemalans were terribly traumatized and fearful of coming here, where they found open arms. It's part of their healing process and ours too, as a community."

He added that the detainees had been through "a lot of trauma," and that they're not sure whether they can trust their hosts.

"I am so proud of this community," Jacobsons aid. "The emotional support as well as the financial support is really breathtaking."

Paid $7,000

The workers paid $7,000 ­ to Guatemalan brokers, referred to as "coyotes", to have the opportunity to be employed in the U.S., Jacobson said, adding that they were misled that the fees they paid would make them legal workers.

At Agriprocessors, the workers purchased Social Security cards the company insisted they have, he explained.

When the workers were charged with identity theft following the raid, Jacobson said there was such an uproar, such charges are no longer being filed in similar cases.

"There's now a case before the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether that charge is legal," Jacobson said. "There's really a question whether they had an intent to hurt others.

"These are peasants -- indigenous people driven off the land. They can't farm any more; ­ cheap American corn has inundated their markets.

Jacobson added that he knows of one woman who gave up her home and her mother's home for a chance to make a living in America.

The Guatemalans, who range in age from 18 to 35, arrived in Decorah last Monday and a probation officer is working on obtaining work permits for them and assisting them in finding jobs. They came here with little more than the clothes they were wearing.

Members of the Faith Coalition have been helping to prepare the Central Americans for an Iowa winter. The electronic monitoring devices they are required to wear around their ankles have proven to be an obstacle, Jacobson explained. They have been unable to find winter boots that would fit around the bulky devices.

"We managed to get them some low-cut hiking boots;­ it's about the best we can do," he said.

During her recent visit to Postville to express her support and solidarity for her countrymen and women, Guatemalan Nobel Peace Prize winner Rigoberta Menchu referred to the ankle bracelets, which can burn the skin while they are recharging, as "dehumanizing" and pledged to report their use to human rights organizations.

A year

The former Agriprocessors workers have been told they could be in Decorah for more than a year.

They want to return home, Jacobson said, because most of them left family behind in Guatemala, who they were supporting through their work at the meatpacking plant.

The first thing all of them wanted to do after being released from jail was to call home.

"They hadn't been able to talk to family for six months," Jacobson said. "Many are the only support for their families. Being in prison has been a tremendous burden to their people back home. They just want to work."

Jacobson said the Guatemalans are ashamed by what has happened. Two of them men spent 15 days in solitary confinement in a high-security prison.

"These are hard-working, family people who are very religious and were just trying to get an education for their kids and send home money to their families," Jacobson said. "They were working for slave wages in a situation none of us would want to work in. To think they are somehow criminal is criminal."

When they were welcomed to Decorah during the recent potluck, Jacobson said he was moved to tears, as were the Guatemalans.

"They were so grateful for the reception they received. It has restored their faith in America," he said.

To help

The Faith Coalition needs Spanish speakers and leads for employment opportunities for the Guatemalans. Donations can be sent to First Lutheran Church, designated for the Guatemalan detainees. Contact First Lutheran Church for more information (563) 382-2638.

Contact Sarah Strandberg at newsroom@wcfcourier.com.