ICE arrests woman who spent years living in church and creating network of sanctuary spaces in Denver area
A prominent activist who created a network of sanctuary spaces for migrants was detained outside her work Monday by U.S. Immigration, Customs and Enforcement agents who 'laughed in her face,' her family said.
Jeanette Vizguerra, described as a 'warrior' and a 'pillar of Denver 's immigrant rights community' by family, friends and colleagues, was arrested in the parking lot of a Target Monday afternoon.
She spent three years living in a church in Denver, which inspired her to become an immigration advocate and to create the Metro Denver Sanctuary Coalition to protect immigrants who fear deportation.
Campaigners fear she has been targeted because of her history of activism in the state.
The mother-of-four's immigration status is not known but a petition calling for her freedom claims she is a permanent U.S. resident. She is being held at a privately-run detention facility in Aurora and campaigners fear she could be moved out of state.
'My mom on Monday, March 17th got detained outside of her job at Target, and was arrested by a few ICE officers while they laughed in her face,' Vizguerra's daughter Luna Baez wrote on a Gofundme page. 'My mom has fought relentlessly for her community and it is time for all of us to now come together and show all the support for her like she has done to us,' she added.
The Independent has contacted ICE for comment.
Vizguerra has lived in Colorado for 30 years, according to the petition. She was targeted for deportation to Mexico in 2009 after she was pulled over for a traffic violation. The incident triggered immigration proceedings and her fight to remain in the U.S.
Vizguerra was actively posting about the Trump administration's immigration crackdown on her Facebook page hours before she was detained.
She amplified an Instagram post Monday by another user that said: 'The public deserves to know more about the Trump administration's mass deportation agenda.' It was accompanied by a Denver Post news headline that read: 'Denver's ICE field office seeks to expand detention space by nearly 1,000 more beds.'
Democratic Colorado Senators John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet both called for the agency to release Vizguerra. 'There are serious concerns about ICE's actions to detain Jeanette Vizguerra,' Hickenlooper said in a social media post. 'Targeting a mother who has been an active part of our Colorado community for nearly three decades will not fix our broken immigration system or secure our border.'
'Jeanette Vizguerra is a mother and pillar in her community. I am deeply concerned about ICE's actions to detain her without any due process, like a deportation order,' Bennet added. 'ICE should ensure Jeanette has legal counsel and immediately release her.'
In January, the Department of Homeland Security said that 'criminals would no longer be able to hide in America's schools and churches to avoid arrests.' But the move has faced resistance and lawsuits from churches and activists.
She is the latest to be targeted in the sweeping action by the Department of Homeland Security. This week a Brown University doctor, Rasha Alawieh, was deported to Lebanon despite a federal judge's order she must remain in the U.S. and a German green card holder is being detained by the immigration agency after being arrested at Boston Logan International Airport. And a woman who was brought to the U.S. at eight-months-old was deported to Laos despite never having stepped foot in the country.
President Donald Trump's border czar Tom Homan said that he 'doesn't care' what judges say or rule when it comes to immigration in an interview this week.
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