FW: About ICE Raid on Campus!
Daniel Huang
FYI, Korean student at UCSB taken away by immigration agents targeting
Iranian student.
Daniel Huang
Policy Advocate, Immigrant Rights Project
Asian Pacific American Legal Center
1145 Wilshire Blvd., 2nd Floor Los Angeles, CA 90017
Tel: (213) 977-7500 Ext. 237 Fax: (213) 977-7595
UCSB Student Taken Away by Immigration Agents Faculty, Staff Question
Motives Behind "Raid"
By Kaitlin Pike
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Immigration and Customs Enforcements (ICE) agents arrested and took into
custody a third-year UCSB student early Wednesday morning for possible
violation of immigration laws.
"Three days ago my friend called her to have lunch with her," said Heidi
Yoon, an international student from Korea and friend of the arrested
third-year student. "She was crying and she said she couldn't tell where she
was? I don't know if she didn't know or if she didn't want to tell." Yoon
was shocked to learn that her friend was still in custody, and said she did
not know what would become of her. Yoon wasn't alone in this response;
scores of interviewed residents and employees at the Santa Ynez Apartments
complex where the student lives had not heard news of the incident, and many
were unsettled after finding out what had occurred.
The student, a sociology and philosophy major, is of Korean descent, though
her citizenship or legal immigrant status remains unclear. Her family, many
members of which live in Los Angeles, has retained Leon Hazany from the
Beverly Hills based law offices of Asherson, Klein & Darbinian ? specialists
in immigration law. Hazany did not return calls made Friday afternoon for
comment.
Despite being the only resident taken into custody Wednesday, the woman was
not the ICE's target when they entered her apartment. Agents came to her
place at the Santa Ynez complex on El Colegio Road in search of her
roommate, an international graduate student from Iran.
The graduate student has also yet to return messages seeking comment.
The ICE records of the Iranian student allegedly had some irregularities or
missing information, apparently prompting the early morning visit. After
producing proper paperwork and identity information, the agents, satisfied
with their finds, reportedly turned to her roommates to see their
documentation or proof of legal status.
After the third-year student failed to provide sufficient verification,
agents took her in.
As of Friday afternoon, the student was being held in a Ventura County
detention center, though she may be moved to to San Pedro. A public
information officer for the ICE said she did not have access to the case
Friday afternoon, but would be able to provide more information this coming
Tuesday.
"I'm very worried about her," Yoon said of her friend. Yoon met the woman
last quarter, and said that she had been in the U.S. since at least high
school. She described her as "outgoing" and "fun." "She liked Facebook,"
Yoon said while laughing.
News of the arrest sputtered through a small circle of UCSB instructors and
students Thursday and Friday, though many quickly challenged the "raid" of
the apartment and subsequent arrest of the undergraduate student. Some, like
religious student professor Rudy Busto, told students during lecture time or
sent emails out to alert the campus community.
"I heard this from a colleague in my department last evening, and today
university officials have been notified about the incident?"
Busto wrote in an email to faculty members and graduate students on
Thursday. He focused on the questioning of the Iranian student, who also
teaches a course in Farsi at UCSB. "It is clear that this home invasion was
entirely inappropriate and unnecessary, as issues of the legal and proper
employment status for the targeted instructor could have been handled
through regular university processes for requesting information."
Darwin BondGraham, a sociology graduate student, said he had been in
correspondence with several professors and Chancellor Henry Yang about what
could be done. He scoffed at the necessity of the interrogation and arrest,
and pondered how prevalent such tactics had become. "Where else is this
happening in the U.S.? How many other international students are being
questioned and detained in the middle of the night?
How many people does this happen to that we don't hear about? Why is this
happening?" he asked. "The 'war on terror' has come home in a very ugly way.
I know a lot foreign students and their friends who are very much on edge
now. The prospect of being interrogated in the middle of the night is
horrible."
UCSB Assistant Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs Paul Desruisseaux said the
Chancellor arranged for the arrested woman's lawyer to talk with the UC
general counsel in order to obtain any necessary documentation about her
student status. He said campus officials and the chancellor will work with
authorities and the family until a resolution is reached. "He's taking what
steps he can in the best interest of the students," Desruisseaux explained.
Kaitlin Pike is an Independent intern.
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