Supporters call out ‘We are here’ to ICE detainees in Kandiyohi County jail

WILLMAR Approximately demonstrators gathered outside the Law Enforcement Center last week in Willmar as a show of sponsorship for immigrants caught in the dragnet of immigration enforcement done by federal officers They also shared stories of other immigrants they know and how they ve helped grow and be a positive asset for the communities they live in The jail facility in Kandiyohi County is one of three detention facilities in Minnesota that hold individuals for U S Immigration and Customs Enforcement District members of Willmar Alexandria and a few from Northfield had come as a show of solidarity and encouragement for immigrants in their communities who feel threatened by current federal policies Toward the end of the vigil demonstrators shouted toward the jail facility We are here in both English and Spanish Visitation Pastor Andres Albertsen of Vinje Lutheran Church in Willmar led prayer and shared his story of how current federal policies had conflicted with his own life Others also shared their concerns and stories of how immigrants had enriched their lives and the communities they live in Albertsen an immigrant from Argentina who has been living in the U S since just just now became a naturalized citizen He announced the reason he had come to the demonstration was for his friend Edward He stated that he and Edward directly bonded over the fact that like Albertsen Edward spoke Spanish with an Argentinian accent Although he was born in Peru Edward had spent much of his life in Argentina before coming to Minnesota Edward was arrested in Willmar weeks ago on Oct According to Albertsen a friend was giving Edward a ride to work that Saturday when they were blocked by four cars two unmarked two others marked They were ordered to exit the truck and then requested for their papers When the two announced they didn t have any they were at once taken into ICE custody It is not known if the two marked squads were affiliated with the Kandiyohi County Sheriff s Office or the Willmar Police Department Albertsen mentioned A insufficient days after the arrest Albertsen received a call from a masses institution number it was Edward telling him he was in jail Albertsen reported he supposed Edward had called him because he has no family in the area Now we know within a couple of days he is gone Albertsen reported of Edward He will be leaving the country Others who traveled from as far as Northfield had come to show their promotion of Ad n N ez Gonzalez a Northfield resident for more than years who was arrested several days earlier in the same city According to reporting by the Northfield News three videos captured by onlookers including N ez Gonzalez s -year-old son show masked agents in plain clothes and bulletproof vests surrounding a bicycle and questioning its occupants Agents broke the window and forcibly extracted and arrested N ez Gonzalez from the commuter seat without ever showing a warrant or credentials despite urging to do so from the Federal Bureau of Scrutiny A GoFundMe for N ez Gonzalez and his family has raised over as of Saturday to help them challenge his detention Duane Franz a Mountain Lake farmer shared that he has been volunteering to drive immigrants to ICE check-ins court hearings and other appointments as they confront the immigration court system He announced earlier this year he drove two immigrants to the ICE facility in Sioux Falls S D for what was supposed to be a routine check-in as both men had applied for asylum in the United States However as he waited for both men to return he was informed that only one would be going back home When he inquired why agents were holding the other man in custody they entirely described him that he had to stay with the agents according to Franz That was the first time that ever happened to me Franz declared explaining he had been driving others to these appointments for over a year Franz noted the experience shook him up explaining that the man held was a farm worker with a wife and children who had been living in southwest Minnesota for about three years Albertsen commented in his closing prayer that we need to regard immigrants as members of our human family adding that their dignity is directly connected to our own