Cross Student Detained By ICE

by Maya McFadden and Laura Glesby |

(Updated) An 18-year-old Wilbur Cross High School student is currently being held at a detention facility in Massachusetts after federal immigration agents seized him at work in New Haven last week.

That student, Esdras R., is an immigrant from Central America. 

According to Mayor Justin Elicker, New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) Supt. Madeline Negrón, and Wilbur Cross High School Principal Matt Brown, Esdras was detained by federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials last Monday, July 21. 

In a joint statement provided to the Independent on Monday, Elicker and Negrón said that Esdras is a rising junior at Wilbur Cross and that he is being held at a detention center in Massachusetts.

An ICE spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment by the publication time of this article.

Esdras is a member of Connecticut Students For a Dream, an advocacy organization for the rights of undocumented students.

He submitted testimony to the state legislature’s appropriations committee this year advocating for the state to provide access to health insurance for all Connecticut residents up until the age of 26, regardless of immigration status.

In that testimony, Esdras wrote: ​“This matters to me since I am an immigrant and I am one of the many people who do not have health insurance. We all deserve to live with well-being and without unnecessary suffering, and access to medical care is crucial for this.

“The concern we have in my family is that my uncle and I do not have health insurance. And we have had illnesses and we have not been able to go to a hospital due to the lack of health insurance because as we know, going to the hospital comes at a great cost that we could not cover.

“It would help me a lot to have health insurance for me and my family. Because we will feel safer getting health insurance.”

In a joint statement provided to the Independent on Monday, Elicker and Negrón said it is ​“unconscionable” for ICE to detain Esdras, who they described as a ​“hard working student and a fine young man.”

They continued: ​“The city and the school district are working with community organizations Unidad Latina en Accion (ULA) and Connecticut Students for a Dream (C4D) to learn what we can about what happened and to engage legal support on Esdras’ behalf,” the mayor and superintendent said. ​“Esdras’ teachers are writing letters of support for him. We will provide whatever support we can to Esdras and to his friends and teachers in the school community.”

In an email sent to Wilbur Cross staff Friday evening, the school’s principal, Matt Brown, said that Esdras is a student in Cross’s International Academy. Brown said that Esdras is currently being held at a facility in Plymouth, Mass. 

“It has taken us several days to confirm his whereabouts and make contact with him but we were finally able to do so this afternoon,” Brown wrote on Friday. ​“Esdras is over 18 and has asked that we provide whatever support for him that we can, including being public about our efforts. The exact details and strategies for this campaign are still emerging, but please know that we are actively working with a strong coalition of community organizations and advocacy groups to support Esdras during this time.” 

He concluded that he is committed to keeping Cross staff informed as the district learns more and about ways the school community can support. 

“It Broke My Heart”

Wilbur Cross educator Magda Natal, who teaches English writing to immigrant students who are learning the language, recalled having Esdras as a student in her class. ​“He’s just such a hard-working young man,” she said. ​“He’s phenomenal, he’s kind to others, he’s just always willing to help a classmate if they need help in his quiet way. He has a such a sweet demeanor.”

When she found out the news, Natal said, ​“It broke my heart. I cried my eyes out when I found out. I just cried.” She thought about the classroom of students she’ll be teaching in the fall. ​“What is waiting for us when we return? And what’s waiting for us around the bend, as far as what’s coming for us within the school system? How will I be able to protect my students?”

In a separate interview Monday, Connecticut Students for a Dream Executive Director Tabitha Sookdeo said that while she does not know Esdras personally, she has heard from her team that he is ​“an extremely sweet and kind person. He’s a quiet guy, but just always wanted to be so helpful.”

“It is absolutely heartbreaking to see high schoolers affected in this way,” Sookdeo said. One concern on her mind, she said, is that Esdras could end up in a detention center with inhumane conditions.

“The conditions in the South” are particularly bad, she said. ​“People don’t have beds. They’re eating moldy food. They’re going to the bathroom in overflowing toilets. To imagine anyone dealing with that is awful, but then to imagine one of our very own New Haven Wilbur Cross High School students facing those conditions — it should keep us all up at night.”

Sookdeo added that there is currently a shortage of immigration attorneys in the state, and urged attorneys — even those without any background in immigration law — to volunteer with the CT Immigrant Support Network.