From Amnesty International USA (http://www.amnestyusa.org):
Teresa* is a 26-year-old from Nicaragua, currently being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), close to Philadelphia, PA.
She fled her home after being intimidated, assaulted, and threatened with further harm by pro-government agents.
Why? Because she criticized the Sandinista government’s crackdown on the rights of Nicaraguans.
We must act quickly at https://act.amnestyusa.org/page/111654/action/1: urge the ICE Field Office Director overseeing the Berks County Detention Facility: #FreeTeresa immediately.
No one should be punished for seeking safety. Being detained for more than four months while awaiting an asylum hearing is a violation of Teresa’s rights. She is one of the more than 25,500 others detained by ICE right now.
Teresa told her lawyer that this time is intensely lonely for her. She is eager to find work and establish herself, and her biggest dream is to see her daughter again. But Teresa is overwhelmed with the possibility of being stuck behind lock and key until her hearing in several months.
Let’s show Teresa that the power of the Amnesty movement is behind her. Let’s turn up the heat and pressure the administration to free her.
With so many people locked up by ICE, it’s important to remember that our voices matter — and that this kind of pressure works. When thousands of us write letters, get media coverage, and shine the spotlight on this outrageous ICE detention, it works.
Together, we’ve helped so many other asylum-seekers and immigrants over the last few years:
- Pastor Steven Tendo fled torture in Uganda. While in detention, ICE neglected his diabetes, and he lost vision in one eye. Together, we successfully prevented his deportation in 2020, and since last spring he has been free awaiting his asylum hearing.
- Maura* and Kelly are transgender women who fled gender-based violence in Nicaragua and Honduras. Both spent more than two years in ICE detention before we finally won their release in 2020 and 2021.
After years of raising our voices, we ended ICE’s practice of “family detention,” (jailing children and their parents). While ICE’s alternatives to detention are still demeaning, this was a huge win.
Now, let’s fight for Teresa. Add your name: Demand ICE free Teresa immediately.
The Biden administration has made major commitments to human rights.
But Teresa is a powerful reminder that they’re not living up fully to those promises, and people are suffering as a result.
When people seeking safety show up on the U.S. border and request asylum, they should be allowed to navigate their cases in freedom and in community with the support of sponsors and community-based nonprofits.
We heard from Teresa’s lawyer that she is determined to be free, and energized by the people who are fighting for her.
Thank you for joining us and thousands of others in demanding her freedom.
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