This Día de Los Muertos, too many families are mourning loved ones lost under our federal immigration detention system in 2026
Maria Luisa Mejia-Tizatl is a sophomore at Rutgers double majoring in Political Science and Public Policy and is a Fall 2026 intern at America’s Voice.
Día de Los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is here and it is a time in both Latin American countries and U.S. communities to reflect and remember loved ones who have passed on. This year many families will have to mourn their family members after unexpectedly losing them while in federal immigration custody or very shortly after being detained. They never got to enjoy their last moment with them and were unaware that they would be losing them so suddenly.
It’s a time not to just reflect on our loved ones and the memories we cherish but also to reflect on what has occurred and continue to happen everyday. Immigrants and even citizens like Renée Good and Alex Pretti are being killed and harmed by ICE and Border Patrol, who are oftentimes dehumanizing them and detaining them with no thought or care for their safety. The families of these victims have to live with the fact that the last moments of their loved ones lives were filled with fear.
While those tragic losses frequently dominate the news headlines, those lost after being jailed behind secretive detention walls often do not. We want to make sure to take this time to recognize and remember the lives lost in 2026 and ensure their names are not forgotten.
- Roberto Jimenez Gutierrez, age 42
- Luis Sandoval, age 48
- Emiliano Andrade-Covarrubias, age 56
- Julian Curo Churata, age 47
- Carlos Josué Marchena, age 36
- Lianyong Wei, age 51
- Edwin Lopez-Cornejo, age 41
- Jesús Manuel Arenas-Silva, age 45
- Adrian Andreas Florian, age 85
- Felix Alcorta-Rodriguez, age 63
- Mamuka Artmeladze, age 43
- Denny Adán González, age 33
- Aled Damien Carbonell-Betancourt, age 27
- Tuan Van Bui, age 55
- José Guadalupe Ramos, age 52
- Royer Perez-Jimenez, age 19
- Mohommad Nazeer Paktyawal, age 41
- Emmanuel Damas, age 56
- Nurul Amin Shah Alam, age 56
- Jairo Garcia-Hernandez, age 27
- Lorth Sim, age 59
- Heber Sanchez Dominguez, age 34
- Victor Manuel Díaz, age 36
- Parady La, age 46
- Luis Beltran Yanez-Cruz, age 68
- Luis Gustavo Nunez Caceres, age 42
- Geraldo Lunas Campos, age 55
Since the Trump administration took office in January 2025, there have been at least 60 people who have died while in federal immigration detention. There are hundreds of people who have suffered injuries and are having to deal with these injuries in detainment centers without proper care.
We should also remember that while these days of remembrance are done with the intention of love and adoration, there is also an overwhelming amount of fear because of the uncertainty and who might end up on the ofrenda, or altar, next year. No one deserves to live their life this way.
This Día de Los Muertos, we want to take a moment to remember the names of those who have lost their lives under our immigrant policies and make clear that all families, no matter their legal status or where they come from, deserve to live in safety and certainty.
