We want to shine a light on the many American citizens and immigrant neighbors who have been targeted by the president and were invited as guests by lawmakers. Although they differ in where they live, their age, occupation, and citizenship status, they all share one thing in common: their lives have been disrupted by the administration’s chaotic, abusive, and self-defeating mass deportation efforts. During a time when any perceived insult to the administration can lead to retribution, they courageously came forward to advocate for change.
GEORGE RETES: Mr. Retes, a U.S. citizen and U.S. military veteran, was simply trying to get to his job as a security guard at a central California farm in July when he was attacked with a chemical agent and brutally dragged out of his vehicle at gunpoint by mass deportation agents, which resulted in his days-long detention despite facing no charges at all. “All this was done by the federal government in full knowledge that George was a U.S. citizen and a veteran,” said Rep. Mark Takano (CA-39), who invited Mr. Retes as his guest. The U.S. military veteran has since filed a lawsuit against the federal government. “I served my country. I wore the uniform, I stood watch, and I believe in the values we say make us different. And yet here, on our own soil, I was wrongfully detained,” he wrote in September. “This isn’t just my story. It’s a warning. Because if it can happen to me, it can happen to any one of us.”
George Retes: "I believe that my lawsuit is one of the first lawsuits against ICE. It's going to set a foundation…I'm hoping that laws change the way that [ICE conducts] themselves and things get better for everyone."
— Home of the Brave (@ofthebraveusa.bsky.social) 2026-02-24T19:03:36.216Z
MARIMAR MARTINEZ: Ms. Martinez, a teacher’s assistant at a Montessori school and guest of Rep. Chuy García (IL-04), was shot five times by a masked immigration agent in October. Body camera footage “appears to contradict the government’s allegation” that Martinez “drove toward officers before one of them opened fire on her,” the Chicago Tribune reported at the time. “Following the shooting, the federal government charged and prosecuted Martinez, falsely labeling her a domestic terrorist,” Rep. García’s office said. “The government later dismissed the charges, yet federal officials continue to defame her. Now Martinez is fighting to release all evidence in her case to expose the Trump administration’s lies and how federal agents are endangering people where they have been deployed.”
ANGEL SILVA: Mr. Silva, a U.S. citizen and guest of Rep. Angie Craig (MN-02), was forced to watch his mom self-deport after the administration abducted her at a green card interview despite the fact that she had a work permit, Social Security number, and was on a pathway to legal residency. “Without any clear path to release, Concepcion ultimately made the difficult decision to self-deport back to Mexico, leaving behind her family in Minnesota, including a 10-year-old child,” Rep. Craig’s office said. “I’m proud to be in Washington representing immigrant families,” Mr. Silva said. “My mother’s strength and sacrifice are the reason I’m here today. Families like mine deserve fairness, compassion, and the chance to stay together.”
I want to introduce you to Angel, my guest for the State of the Union. His mother was detained during an immigration hearing and ultimately self-deported. I’m honored to have Angel here. His commitment to sharing his mother’s story is a reminder that immigrants strengthen the fabric of our state.
— Rep. Angie Craig (@repangiecraig.bsky.social) 2026-02-24T19:08:23.140Z
FERNANDO HERNÁNDEZ GARCÍA: Mr. Hernández García, a guest of Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), was just 17 when the Trump administration ripped his family apart during a medical emergency. “His younger sister, Sara, was only 10 years old and battling a rare and life threatening form of brain cancer when she was detained and deported while the family was traveling in search of specialized treatment,” Rep. Espaillat’s office said. “Left alone in the United States, Fernando completed high school while working in the fast food industry to support himself, maintain the family home, and help cover the cost of his sister’s life saving medication.” Mr. Hernández García said that he’s proof that claims that the administration’s policies don’t affect American citizens are a lie. “My family was torn apart from me, and my future along with them. If my parents were still here, they would have pushed me to go to college, to dream big, and they would have helped me make it happen. Now, I don’t even have time to think about that. My baby sister could die as a result of this.”
A 10-year-old U.S. citizen was deported while fighting rare brain cancer. Her brother, Fernando, carries the fight forward. He’s Chairman @repespaillat.bsky.social’s State of the Union guest.
— Congressional Hispanic Caucus (@hispaniccaucus.bsky.social) 2026-02-24T16:54:27.409Z
CAROLINE DIAS GONCALVES: Ms. Dias Goncalves, a University of Utah student, Dreamer, and guest of Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO), was detained for more than two weeks after a traffic stop that raised alarming questions about ICE and local police collusion despite state laws “restricting coordination between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities,” NBC News reported. Following her release in June, Ms. Dias Goncalves said she hoped “no one else has to go through what I did. But I know that right now, over 1,300 people are still in that same nightmare in that Aurora detention facility. They are just like me—including other people who’ve grown up here, who love this country, who want nothing more than a chance to belong.”
Caroline Dias Goncalves is our guest for tonight’s State of the Union. Dreamers like Caroline have grown up here since they were young kids. They should not have to live in fear of violence from ICE.
— Senator John Hickenlooper (@hickenlooper.senate.gov) 2026-02-25T00:35:59.134Z
MARCELO GOMES DA SILVA: The high school honors student was on his way to volleyball practice when he was abducted by ICE, forced to sleep on a concrete floor, and fed only crackers for lunch and dinner. Mr. Gomes da Silva, a guest of Rep. Seth Moulton (MA-06), said that most of the 40 men he was caged with were workers who, like him, were detained while simply going about their day. Following his release, Mr. Gomes da Silva said that he had translated for some of the men, who wept when he told them they had orders of deportation. “Since his experience inside the detention facility, Marcelo has maintained a commitment that he made to the other men he shared a cell with: that he would be a voice for all immigrants who have been unfairly detained,” Rep. Moulton’s office said.
Mr. Gomes da Silva said he’d hoped his presence at the State of the Union would open Trump’s eyes “and give him an insight on how it feels to be an immigrant — show him a way to be more sympathetic towards us.” But Rep. Moulton’s office said that the 19-year-old had to be rushed from the chamber for his own safety after DHS targeted him on social media.
RAIZA CONTRERAS: Mr. Contreras, a guest of Sen, Chuck Schumer (D-NY), is the mother of the “first known New York City public school student detained by immigration agents,” Chalkbeat reported. Her child, Ellis Preparatory Academy student Dylan, was following the rules by applying for Special Immigration Juvenile Status and attending his immigration court appointment when he was kidnapped by mass deportation agents. Dylan still remains detained more than eight months later. “He has been detained for 8.5 months and is being held in Pennsylvania, far from everyone who loves him,” said Ms. Contreras. “All he wants is the chance to study and build a future. I am simply asking for fairness and for my son to be brought home.”
Dylan entered legally, followed the law, showed up to his court hearing—he was still detained.Raiza, his mother and my SOTU guest, shared the nightmare her family has endured since.While Trump lies, thousands of families are living with the consequences of ICE’s cruelty.
— Chuck Schumer (@schumer.senate.gov) 2026-02-25T05:43:09.286Z
TEREZA LEE: Cited by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill) as his inspiration for the Dream Act, Ms. Lee “was a musical prodigy who had played as a soloist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra,” his office said. “She had been accepted into several of the country’s most prestigious music schools, but she had a problem—her parents had brought her to the United States when she was two, and she was undocumented.” Ms. Lee’s subsequent plea to Sen. Durbin’s office led to the very first iteration of the Dream Act in 2001. “Tereza went on to obtain her BA, Masters, and Doctorate from the Manhattan School of Music and has been a teacher there since 2011,” Sen. Durbin continued. Her invitation to the State of the Union should serve as a reminder that the federal failure to pass this bill has left millions of young immigrants unable to reach their full potential.
ALIYA RAHMAN, MARY GRANLUND, MUBASHIR HUSSEN, AND GERARDO OROZCO GUZMAN: Rep. Ilhan Omar (MN–05) invited four Minnesotans who have witnessed or experienced first-hand the devastation of the federal government’s invasion of their communities. Ms. Rahman, a disabled person with autism and a traumatic brain injury, “was driving to a doctor’s appointment when her window was smashed in by DHS agents, she was forcibly removed from her vehicle, and she was violently detained by federal agents,” Rep. Omar’s office said. Ms. Granlund is chair of the Columbia Heights School Board, which oversees the elementary school where five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos has been a student. Mr. Hussen was stopped by masked agents who refused to verify his ID “despite Hussen repeating ‘I’m a citizen’ multiple times.” Mr. Orozco Guzman, “a workers’ rights organizer who has been fighting wage theft and labor trafficking,” has been detained at a number of abusive detention camps since his January abduction, including the deadly Camp East Montana outside El Paso, Texas.
Shockingly, Ms. Rahman faced continued harassment when she was arrested and removed from the chamber Tuesday night for “silently challenging Trump” during his speech, Democracy Now! reported.
Aliya Rahman, woman who was dragged out of car by ICE in Minneapolis: "I've spent the last month learning the names of the tendons in my shoulder, because both of my shoulders are torn — cartilage and tendons. But what I haven't learned is the names of the people who did this to me."
ADRIANA QUIROZ ZAPAT: Ms. Quiroz Zapat was represented at the State of the Union by her niece, Monica Isabel Van Housen. Last March, ICE loaded the Colombian asylum-seeker onto a bus, “drove her to Mexico, and tried to dump her on the Mexican authorities,” The Bulwark reported in April. “The Mexicans, after hearing Zapata’s story of police corruption, threats, torture, and sexual violence spanning years, refused to accept her. They sent her, the ICE agents, and their bus back across the border.” She has been unjustly detained since despite the fact that she has protected status under the Convention Against Torture, said Rep. Rob Menendez (NJ-08).
I'm going to the State of the Union tonight with the niece of my constituent, Adriana. Adriana is being held by ICE despite having protected status under the Convention Against Torture.
— Rep. Rob Menendez (@menendez.house.gov) 2026-02-24T22:58:28.023Z
Tonight, I am bringing Monica Isabel Van Housen to the State of the Union address.Here's why. 🧵
— Rep. Rob Menendez (@menendez.house.gov) 2026-02-24T16:54:39.111Z
MOHSEN MAHDAWI: Mr. Mahdawi was a guest of Rep. Becca Balint (VT-At Large) at a competing People’s State of the Union event, where he discussed how the administration targeted him for detention — and how his community fought to free him. Last April, Mr. Mahdawi was simply following the rules by attending his citizenship appointment when he was abducted by mass deportation agents. While a federal judge issued a ruling temporarily blocking officials from moving him out of Vermont, he remained unjustly detained. However, his advocates refused to give up. In a video of his eventual release, a large crowd sang “We Shall Overcome” as Mahdawi emerged making peace signs with his fingers.
During his People’s State of the Union remarks, Mr. Mahdawi urged attendees to stay strong and united against attacks seeking to pit neighbor against neighbor. “If we believe in justice, no force can intimidate us,” he said. “The tools of this administration are to frighten and intimidate us until we lose vision. Still, if we unite and work together from a place of love, not from a place of fear, they will not be able to.”
Last night was powerful — shoulder to shoulder with my colleagues, standing for the Constitution, united with the people.Thank you, Mohsen Mahdawi, for joining me, for using your voice to defend our First Amendment, and for being with us in the fight for the America we all deserve.
— Representative Becca Balint (@balint.house.gov) 2026-02-25T20:38:19.853Z
“He revealed that, after his release following 16 days of detention, his message to Trump and his administration was: ‘You will not intimidate me,’” The New Arab reported. “Mahdawi repeated phrases that the audience engaged with and repeated after him, directing them to the Trump administration, saying, ‘We are the people… we are not afraid of you, because the love in our hearts is much stronger than the darkness that blinds you.’”
