El Grito de Nosotros
Our Cry: A letter from inside Delaney Hall
Through this letter, I would like to describe the situation that thousands of immigrants are currently living through:
First, we’d like to apologize for the way we entered the United States, but we were experiencing safety circumstances that endangered our lives and the lives of some members of our family.
Upon entering, we surrendered ourselves to border authorities who processed us. Some of us were given parole or a court date to continue our cases in accordance with the due process afforded to us by the Constitution and laws of the United States. We also attended periodic check-ins, obtained work permits and social security numbers, filed taxes, and were working legally and contributing to the economy. Therefore, we did not pose a threat to the country or the communities where we resided.
We know that ICE agents have orders to arrest immigrants. In our cases, we had already been processed and were complying with legal requirements. There was no judge's order for our detention or arrest, since we received a procedural benefit upon our entry, but the ICE officers did not take this into account, nor the fact that we had an immigration court date. They arrested us at scheduled appointments and at USCIS offices.
We have been subjected to court proceedings where lawyers are afraid to represent us because they say there is a presidential order to deport as many people as possible without considering or reviewing each case individually. Judges are denying a large number of cases, dismissing them outright.
Simultaneously, prosecutors are filing motions to send us to Latin American countries like Ecuador, Guatemala, and Honduras, countries with similar or worse conditions. Even people from those same countries are seeking safety and protection on U.S. soil. In some cases, the motion is to send a person to Uganda to present and defend their asylum case there.
This has forced many to request voluntary departure as the only option to return to their countries of origin, despite the danger we may face, if we are exposed.
In these courts, the judges inform the detainees that they can buy plane tickets to return to their country, but ICE officers refuse this possibility, telling us not to buy those tickets.
Furthermore, there is a contradiction in the processes for voluntary departures and approved deportations, as it takes two, three, or more months of waiting to be sent back to our country of origin.
We feel vulnerable, in a way, kidnapped or detained without justification. We see with profound helplessness and frustration that the right to due process & legal counsel were violated, and benefits granted in the 4th, 5th, and 6th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution were unacknowledged. In addition, families are being destroyed and separated, especially where there are minor children and nephews who are suffering a very strong psychological impact because they do not understand the situation, and in some cases, they were subjected to witnessed the arrests
of their wives and fathers, who are devastated by the tragedy and the economic burden, since we are the providers and heads of our households.
Additionally, the ICE agents have arrested people with mental health issues, physical disabilities such as deaf and non-verbal, elderly individuals, and young people with juvenile status, with whom we have to live in the detention centers that are overcrowded. The flu is a constant problem among the detainees, as are stress, fever, and general body aches; which could lead to an outbreak of illness or an epidemic.
In addition to what was previously mentioned in my court hearing with the motion to send me to Ecuador, I did not have an interpreter in my language. I, Leonardo Villalba, with identification number A■■■■■■■■■, take responsibility for this statement, as I do not want my fellow detainees to suffer any consequences. Our American dream is safety and protection - with our families. Although this is a difficult situation, we trust in God and believe in American justice. On the following pages are the signatures of the detainees who will corroborate what has been stated.
This letter was written by Leonardo (who has since been transferred) and signed by 24 more men detained at Delaney Hall. This letter not only represents the experiences of those at Delaney Hall, but the experiences of thousands of other immigrants in detention centers across the country.