Meriden students speak out at city meeting in support of classmate detained by ICE

Students and community members attended Monday night’s meeting of the Meriden City Council to stand in solidarity with a teenager who was detained by ICE and to call for city leaders to do more to get him home.

The student was detained by ICE earlier in the month, days before he was set to graduate from Maloney High School.

Officials said he was taken into custody along with his father while the pair attended a standard immigration hearing in Hartford.

“He is an honor roll student, a competitive athlete and vibrant member of our school community,” Charles Cusachs, of Meriden, said. “Yet, today, he is not with us because he was taken from us by ICE without warning or explanation to our school or city officials.”

Last week, a rally was held in Meriden to call for his return. Dozens of teachers, students and community members showed their support.

“The students in Meriden feel very disturbed by the recent events. As a first-generation immigrant, it feel it is my job to advocate for people like the student affected who unfortunately cannot be with us to share their stories,” Adriana Farfan, of Meriden, said.

Many attended Monday’s city council meeting, filling the seats inside council chambers, using their three minutes during public comment to address the situation.

“This was not the arrest of a violent criminal. It was the traumatic removal of a classmate, a good student, a friend and a gentle presence in our community,” Ryan Rosario, a Meriden resident and head of the UConn Democrats group, said. “You, the leaders closest to the people, have the power to send a clear signal. A unanimous statement condemning these actions will echo far beyond Meriden. It will tell Hartford and Washington that our city, our community, will not and cannot tolerate the seizure of innocent students.”

Some spoke to what it was like to get their diplomas on Tuesday without their classmate present.

“It was kind of bittersweet,” Angelique Flores said. “In the back of my mind I’m just like, he can’t be here to celebrate all of his years of school as well, all of his hard work.”

Mary Peitler attended the meeting after hearing about the student’s detainment through her grandson and wanted to show her support.

“My grandson just graduated Tuesday night from Maloney and was missing a member of his class and we all felt it. Here it is, it hits home. Deportation without reason,” Peitler said. “Meriden is a melting pot and it should be a melting pot.”

The mayor and other city and state leaders said they’re pushing for his release. But for some, they’d like to see more be done.

“We call upon our leaders to act with urgency and compassion to rectify this wrong, and to ensure no other student has to endure such an ordeal,” Cusachs said.

“History will remember this moment,” Rosario said, “and it will remember those who chose to protect our children, and those who chose to look away. Please, I urge you, to choose the side of our community.”

NBC Connecticut reached out to ICE for comment but haven’t heard back.