Dylan Contreras has missed quite a lot of issues at residence the previous 10 months, together with his twenty first birthday. However on Thursday, he was grateful to be again in New York Metropolis after almost a yr in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention middle.
“I’m extremely grateful to everybody — from those that despatched letters to those that made these stunning banners — and to everybody who supplied help, not simply to me, however to lots of my fellow detainees inside,” mentioned López.
After being held within the detention middle and dealing with imminent deportation, the younger Venezuelan was lastly in a position to breathe the air of freedom on Thursday, amidst a festive gathering at a church. Immigration advocates drove him again from the Moshannon Valley Processing Middle in Pennsylvania and helped translate for him on the jubilant occasion.
His mom, who by no means stopped preventing for his launch, held him shut.
Enrolled at Ellis Prep Academy in Marble Hill, then-20-year-old Contreras had no prison historical past and was pursuing a inexperienced card after arriving from Venezuela. He turned one of many first identified NYC public faculty college students to be detained by federal brokers firstly of President Donald Trump’s second time period in 2025.
He was detained after a scheduled immigration listening to, with the Division of Homeland Safety claiming he entered the U.S. illegally.
However Contreras’ authorized crew said he entered with permission to hunt asylum, and he was following the principles. His attorneys with the New York Authorized Help Group mentioned that after months of submitting requests and petitions in federal court docket, the decision from ICE got here out of nowhere Wednesday.
“Dylan nonetheless has pending authorized circumstances with USCIS and the immigration court docket; he’s at the moment making use of for—and awaiting a call on—his Particular Immigrant Juvenile Standing,” mentioned Annie Whitney, López’s legal professional.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said that Lopez’s arrest was a shame and that this nation stands for one thing extra. She highlighted the work of activists and the motto that New York belongs to everybody.
“Dylan Contreras is residence,” Hochul wrote on the social media platform X. “However we shouldn’t have needed to battle for ten months to free a highschool scholar who did the whole lot proper. And we is not going to relaxation till each harmless individual whom ICE has snatched from the streets is reunited with their family members.”
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani emphasised that unity is key and that New Yorkers deserve to stay of their metropolis, the place they may obtain the safety they want — emphasizing that the 5 boroughs stays a sanctuary metropolis.
“We’re talking a few highschool freshman in our metropolis,” mentioned Mamdani. “It is a metropolis that doesn’t stand for youngsters being snatched from their residence.”
With greater than 300 days of federal detention behind him, Contreras is specializing in household and residential now. However that is not holding him from occupied with the numerous others like him who will not be free.
“I want that I had the chance to convey all of them with me after I left that facility however couldn’t,” he mentioned.
