Carlos Urrutia is Home! And He needs Your Help...
ISAIAH faith leader, Carlos Urrutia, was forcibly and abruptly taken by ICE in July of 2018 while his family and other ISAIAH leaders watched in horror. It has been a long 14 months of detainment for him and all of us who love him. We are very happy to report that he is currently home with his family!
As soon as Carlos was released six weeks ago, he joined the ISAIAH's One Body immigration work and is leading this path with others in his parish and in our state! He wrote the below statement about his experience over the past year.
En Español - English below
Hola me llamo Carlos y soy feligrés en la iglesia de Santa Odilia enShoreview. He estado en el estado de Minnesota por 26 años y soy papá de 3hijos de 18, 17, y 12.
Estoy involucrado en la comunidad de mi iglesia y he sido un líder conISAÍAS por 5 años. En este momento, yo estoy en un proceso con inmigración.
En el pasado, yo estuve detenido por 19 meses en total, hace 2 meses salíbajo fianza de Sherbourne County donde estuve por los últimos 13 meses.
Yo tuve una orden de deportación que fue cancelada por un juez de inmigración,pero luego fue apelada por un fiscal y cambiaron esa decisión contra mi.
El Board of Immigration Appeals hizo una decisión que no ve mi dignidadhumana y es basada en cosas que no son ciertas de mi. Esto no es algo quesolamente me ha pasado a mi, cuando estaba en Sherbourne County conoci a muchaspersonas viviendo las mismas injusticias.
Después de pasar tanto tiempo en detención con ayuda legal me he podidoreunir con mi familia porque un juez federal le dijo a inmigración que medieran fianza porque mi detención era injustificada.
Con todo esto ellos quieren hacerme creer que no valgo nada, que no deberíade estar aquí, pero se que yo valgo mucho y al contrario de lo que ellospiensan, yo soy poderoso y quiero cambiar este sistema que trata a losmigrantes así.
La realidad es que yo todavía podría ser deportado y separado de mi familia.Por eso mientras estoy aquí me despierto en la mañana, le pido a Dios subendición y agarro el camión y voy a mis juntas de ISAIAS y a mi iglesia y sigoaquí luchando.
Hello, my name is Carlos andI am a parishioner at St. Odilia Church in Shoreview. I have been in the stateof Minnesota for 26 years and I am the father of 3 children aged 18, 17, and12.
I am involved in thecommunity of my church and have been a leader with ISAIAH for 5 years. Currently,I am in legal proceedings with immigration.
In the past, I was detainedfor a total of 19 months, 2 months ago I was able to post bail from SherbourneCounty, where I was detained for the last 13 months.
I had a deportation orderthat was canceled by an immigration judge, but then it was appealed by aprosecutor and they changed that decision against me.
The Board of ImmigrationAppeals made a decision that does not see my human dignity and is based onthings that are not true about me. This is not something that is only happeningto me, when I was in Sherbourne County I met many people living the sameinjustices.
After spending so much timein detention with legal help I was able to reunite with my family because afederal judge told immigration to allow me to post bail because my detentionwas unjustified.
With all this they want tomake me believe that I am worthless, that I shouldn't be here, but I know thatI am worth a lot and contrary to what they think, I am powerful and I want tochange this system that treats immigrants in this way.
The reality is that I could still be deported and separated from my family. That's why while I'm here I wake up in the morning, I ask God for his blessing and I take the bus and go to my ISAIAH meetings and to my church and I'm still here fighting.
His fight for dignity and justice is long from over. Because of your love and support, he's been able to attain legal support to continue to tirelessly fight his deportation order from ICE. Carlos has lived in Minnesota over 25 years and this is his home with his wife and three children. As he continues his fight, Carlos and his lawyers are asking for your help in two important and powerful ways:
- Please sign this petition of support for his ability to stay in Minnesota with his family, friends and community. We need as many signatures as possible by Sunday Night at midnight!
- Please donate whatever you can to the family's GoFundMe account so that they can pay his legal fees and financial obligations as they continue this final stretch to the finish line.