It has been six months since U.S. immigration officials separated Felipe from his mother and father, after the family arrived at the border together seeking asylum.

Felipe turned 11 years old in a government shelter for unaccompanied migrant children in Illinois, thousands of miles away from his parents, who the U.S. government had sent to a U.S. Marshals prison in Texas. He couldn't even talk to his parents on his birthday.

At a time when families come together to celebrate and give thanks, Felipe and his parents are longing to be together.

Sign the petition asking the U.S. government to release Felipe and his parents so they can be together for the holidays! Take action now: https://immigrantjustice.org/ReuniteFelipesFamily

The National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) is representing the family and we filed a civil rights complaint with the government in September. So far, the government has not given any official explanation for why it separated the family nor has it taken any action to reunify them.

Felipe recently wrote this letter asking to be reunited with his parents:

“Hello, my name is Felipe and I am 11 years old. I have been sick ever since I arrived in immigration [custody]. My lawyer helped me calculate the days I have spent here without my parents. Days = 173 → 5 months and 20 days  4752 hours  299,120 minutes  14,947,200 seconds  24 weeks, 5 days  47.4% of 2022. I want my parents to leave detention and be with me, I feel sad without them … It’s been really difficult. Please let my parents leave immigration; when I see them again the first thing I’m going to do is hug them. I’m also going to cry out of happiness. Thank you for reading this note. Felipe”

Felipe deserves to be with his parents, free from detention, and with the support they need to recover from the trauma of this forcible separation.

Sign the petition to reunite Felipe's family: https://immigrantjustice.org/ReuniteFelipesFamily

Thank you for taking action to bring this family back together.

-Marie Silver
Managing Attorney, NIJC's Immigrant Children’s Protection Project

 

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