Free Emerson

By Samantha Searls, Program Director

Last week Ignite Peace received a call about Emerson Colindres, a recent CPS high school graduate and soccer player who was taken by ICE. Emerson is a big brother, a loving son, and overall good person with no criminal record. His family, teammates, teachers and community were devastated so they reached out to us for advice and connections.

When Emerson was 8 he immigrated to the US with his family from Honduras to seek safety and a new life. Our broken immigration system denied their claim to asylum, but ICE has allowed the Colindres family to continue being part of the Cincinnati community because they posed no threat to society.

That all changed on Wednesday, when Emerson was asked to check in with ICE. He thought he was getting an ankle monitor through the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program but instead was faced with ICE agents who cuffed him in front of his mom and soccer coach.

Ignite Peace has been arranging media interviews for Emerson’s family and friends to raise awareness and call for his release. His story has reached national outlets like ABC News, Good Morning America, NBC News, and was included in broader stories from Reuters and Rachel Maddow. Our Instagram post has been viewed over 300,000 times and an additional 54,000 times on Facebook.

On Sunday, June 8, nearly 500 people showed up outside the Butler County Jail to demand Emerson’s release and an end to the 287(g) program. The rally turned into a march around the majority-Latino neighborhood surrounding the jail, where people came out of their homes to cheer on the group.

Emerson has since found a new attorney and is forming a legal strategy. Unfortunately, his mother Ada and younger sister have also been given orders to self-deport within 30 days after being allowed to live unbothered for years.

Stories like Emerson’s are important to tell. Share this story with 5 friends so we can shine a light on what ICE is doing to innocent families.