ICE took our father away. NC lawmakers can stop this from happening more | Opinion

On May 14, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents picked up my dad, Jose, as he drove to work. It shattered my life and that of my nine siblings, all United States citizens, all raised in East Charlotte.

I hope that North Carolina lawmakers, especially Rep. Carla Cunningham, vote to ensure that this doesn’t happen to more families in our community. I hope they’ll sustain the veto of HB318, which would require sheriffs to hand over hardworking people like my dad over to ICE. Cunningham is the only House Democrat to approve the bill in its last vote.

My dad is the breadwinner in our family. He runs a small construction company, where I work with two siblings and my boyfriend. He’s been in Charlotte for 29 years, and he roots for all of the Charlotte sports teams. This is his home, even if he doesn’t have the papers to prove so.

He was on his way to work when ICE agents stopped his van and asked for documentation. They detained him, and when my mother showed up to the scene, they wouldn’t give any details on where they were taking him and his coworkers. Then, when my mother asked for the keys to his work van, she was taunted with them and was told she will not be receiving them.

After days of no contact and struggles to get information on how to locate my father, they told us they took him to Stewart Detention Center in Georgia. While there, he began to lose weight drastically. When we made contact with my father, it shattered our family as we heard our strong-hearted father start to break down, knowing he was not with us to take care of his family. He informed us of the treatment of people at the Stewart Detention Center. He felt they were treating them worse than wild animals. Just imagine the trauma he endured. The month that he was detained, he witnessed suffering and death of his fellow companions.

While dad was away, business slowed, and the family’s mental state deteriorated. We tried to keep going as best as we possibly could, but my dad is the moral and financial center of our family.

You might argue that HB318 focuses on people detained in county jails, so it would not affect immigrants not suspected of crimes. But, if the bill passes, the vast majority of people detained and handed over to ICE will be those who are stopped for minor infractions and have no criminal records — like my father. Families will be split apart, and some won’t be lucky enough to find out about the detainment.

Instead of helping Charlotte, this bill will cause more anxiety and fear for the residents of our city. Adults will fear going to work, wondering if they will be next. Kids will fear their parents are not coming home. Businesses like my dad’s will suffer.

We were not sure when or if we would see dad again during the 26 days he was held, and, though we have him back, my siblings and I remain terrified he’ll be taken from us again. No hard-working families trying to be a contributing part of their communities should go through what we are going through. North Carolina lawmakers and Rep. Cunningham have the chance to show that our government still sees us as human and as hard-working residents that want to make a difference in our communities.