As part of the national Bring Them Home campaign of the National Immigrant Youth Alliance,
family and friends of local Lexington deported DREAMer Ceferino
Santiago held a vigil for the DREAM 9 detained at Eloy Detention
Center in Arizona (see more about Ceferino at the DREAM Activist website).
U.S.
immigration authorities denied humanitarian parole for this group of
nine undocumented youths who presented themselves at the legal port of
entry at Nogales, peacefully protesting the border-security based
immigration policies and requesting intervention from President Obama.
(Read more at the Huffpost article here.)
Ceferino Santiago is an award-winning student who graduated from
Lafayette High School in Lexington. He needed ear surgery that his
family could not afford here in Kentucky, so he was forced to go to
Mexico for treatment. He wants to return to the U.S. to further his
education and give back to the Lexington community.
Several CKCPJ PEACE Leaders (including Kerby Neill and Tanya Torp) supported in person the vigil yesterday for Ceferino Santiago, brother of
former CKCPJ Board member Pedro Santiago. The Herald-Leader reported that about 30 people attended the vigil.
From a negative comment on the news site, it is clear that not everyone understands the issues regarding undocumented youth and their continuing relationships that cross national borders despite draconian laws. As Dominic Power, a volunteer coordinator with the National Immigrant Youth Alliance put it in an interview with ABC: "These are people who have spent most of their lives in the United States. This truly is their home. They [the DREAM 9 protesters now imprisoned] wanted to take a stand for all of the people that want to come home, and at the end of the day they're in the same situation."
The poignant portrayal of brotherly love -- figuratively and literally -- cannot be more eloquently stated than in the photo of Pedro Santiago at right; see more Herald-Leader photos of the vigil here.
For those who couldn't attend in person, please make a call to Kentucky Representatives Barr (202-225-4706) and Yarmuth (202-225-5401) urging them to sign the Congressional Support Letter. More information is available at the DREAM 9 Facebook event page.
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