People rallied outside of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in San Francisco this morning to support a Bay Area father facing deportation.
Enil, whose last name we’re withholding for safety concerns, was detained last November in San Francisco’s Asylum office.
But he was released after attorney Elena Hodges filed a habeas petition challenging his detention. Then, in May this year, ICE filed a motion to re-detain Enil, ordering him to appear back in court.
"It's the same building where he's been detained before," said Hodges. "It can be pretty retraumatizing to even have to enter the building and not know, am I going to leave?"
Enil wanted community support. So, Pangea Legal, the nonprofit where Hodges works, and other community partners held a rally outside the court on Sansome Street. While Enil waited to enter the building, around 30 people sang, "Te vemos, te queremos, luchamos por ti," to him and the long line waiting for ICE check-ins.
Cindy McPherson, with the Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity, has been a regular at Sansome for the past year. Once a week, she does a shift distributing snacks, coffee, and legal resources to the people waiting for immigration court and check-in appointments.
"To me, my spirituality requires the activism to be woven in," said McPherson. "I can't really pray for the wellness of all beings if I just sit there reading the news."
Just after 10:00 a.m., Enil and Hodges exited the building and let the crowd know that the judge had deferred the ruling.
Hodges says while Enil is just one individual, "it's not just an isolated example of someone being unjustly detained. This is a pattern that we're seeing around the Bay Area and nationwide, and we need a structural response."
Hodges expects a ruling on Enil’s case to be made some time in the next two weeks.
ICE did not respond in time to KALW's request for comment.
