Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Lori Trahan (D-MA-03)
LOWELL, MA – Today, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03) demanded the immediate release of a 14-year-old Marlborough resident who was detained yesterday by U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents:
“Yesterday, a 14-year-old girl from Marlborough was detained by federal immigration agents. A child with no criminal history was taken into custody in an apparent overnight attempt to use her as a hostage to coerce her father into turning himself in for deportation. As a mother to 15- and 11-year old daughters, I am furious. This is not immigration enforcement. It’s the deliberate targeting of a child to inflict maximum pain on her family.”
“Two months ago, ICE detained five-year-old Liam Ramos in Minnesota under similar circumstances. The nation watched in horror as a little boy with a blue bunny hat and Spiderman backpack was taken into custody by federal immigration authorities. The ordeal was so heinous that a federal judge ordered his release and called it ‘cruel’ and ‘bereft of human decency.’ But now, federal immigration agents seem to be doing it again, this time here in Massachusetts.”
“I am demanding her immediate release. She should be returned home to her family this afternoon and able to go back to school tomorrow. In the meantime, DHS must abandon its clearly adopted policy of using children as bait to detain and deport family members and instead focus its efforts on violent criminals.”
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