San Marco, TX – Felipe Abonza-Lopez, 20-year-old Dreamer from San Marcos, Texas was released from an immigration detention center on Friday in Pearsall, Texas, after more than one month in detention without cause.
Felipe, who has a disability, was mocked by guards during his detention, and he had his DACA unjustly revoked,
Amy Fischer, Policy Director at RAICES issued the following statement:
We are so happy that Felipe is finally free, but he should have never been detained in the first place. CBP and ICE are acting as rogue agencies, and it was the power of community outrage that made them buckle under pressure and allow for his release. We must now work towards releasing his cousin Javier, passing the Dream Act, and fighting to put an end to this harmful detention and deportation machine.
Tomas Diaz de Leon of Mano Amiga, in San Marcos, issued the following statement:
Our fellow San Marcos community member Felipe has been freed. Together, with people of conscience nationwide, we’ve won a significant victory over ICE, made possible by those who rallied for his release and inundated ICE with calls. However, the fight continues; let’s use the momentum built for Felipe to fight for restoration of his DACA status and the release of his cousin Javier, and to continue urging Congress to pass a clean Dream Act. No human is illegal!
Julieta Garibay, co-founder and Texas Director, United We Dream issued the following statement,
We celebrate the people’s power to ensure Felipe was released. We are not forgetting that the Sheriff and Border Patrol dehumanized, criminalized, detained, and terrorized Felipe and his family. This is a clear example of emboldened racism in an era of Trump in a state where Abbott and Patrick pull the strings.
We will continue to take the streets and fight against SB4 and demand that a clean Dream Act is passed immediately. Our community cannot and will not wait. Immigrant youth across our beautiful state will not back down. We are here to stay, and we are here to fight for justice!
