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Emigration and immigration

ICE Arrests 20-Year-Old Venezuelan Asylum Applicant at Immigration Court in NYC

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Chancellor of New York City Public Schools Melissa Aviles-Ramos has reassured families that schools will continue to be safe spaces for immigrant students after a 20-year-old Venezuelan asylum applicant was detained at an immigration court in the city. The student, Dylan, was attending ELLIS Prep, a public international school in the Bronx, when he was arrested by ICE agents last Wednesday after a court hearing. According to Nicole Brownstein, a city Department of Education spokesperson, this is the only known case of a New York City public school student being arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement under President Donald Trump's second term.

Key Takeaways:

  • The 20-year-old Venezuelan asylum applicant, Dylan, was detained by ICE agents at an immigration court in NYC after a court hearing, marking the only known case of a NYC public school student being arrested by ICE under President Trump's second term.
  • The Department of Education does not track the immigration status or home countries of public school students.
  • Immigration lawyers say it's extremely rare for ICE to visit courthouses, and for ICE agents to detain individuals at court hearings.
  • The Trump administration has sought to increase enforcement at courthouses, issuing directives and guidance allowing ICE agents to conduct arrests at previously off-limits locations, including schools and courthouses.
  • An estimated 32,000 immigrants from Venezuela live in the New York City area, according to the Migration Policy Institute.
  • The Department of Homeland Security has sent out emails to Venezuelans and others in recent weeks, saying their authorization to remain in the country has been revoked and they must leave the country immediately.
  • Immigration lawyers say that ICE's enforcement actions on Wednesday will dissuade individuals from going to immigration court, making it more difficult for those seeking asylum to access the court system

Statistics:

  • An estimated 32,000 immigrants from Venezuela live in the New York City area, according to the Migration Policy Institute.
  • 350,000 Venezuelans in the country were granted Temporary Protected Status, which the Trump administration has sought to end.
  • The Department of Homeland Security sent out emails to Venezuelans and others in recent weeks, saying their authorization to remain in the country has been revoked and they must leave the country immediately.

Sources:

  • "New York City Public Schools stands firmly with our students, including our immigrant students, and our schools will always be safe spaces for them," Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos said in a statement on social media.
  • The Chalkbeat: "Bronx high school student detained by immigration ICE agents"
  • ICE spokesperson Marie Ferguson: "those detained at immigration court would be subject to expedited removal, a process by which individuals can be summarily removed from the country without hearings before immigration judges."
  • The New York Legal Assistance Group: "Dylan entered the United States with permission to seek asylum, and his detention robs him of the opportunity to seek that relief with the full protections offered to him under the law."
  • The Migration Policy Institute: "Venezuelan immigrants in the United States"
  • Gothamist: "ICE officers stationed outside the fifth-floor courtroom, and several more ICE agents downstairs around noon last Wednesday, the day Dylan was taken into custody."

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