To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.
Pablo Villavicencio, an undocumented immigrant who has worked as a pizza delivery man in Brooklyn, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Friday, June 1, the same day immigrant rights advocates gathered in New York to protest the Trump administration's cruel immigration policies. (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Local officials in New York are demanding the release of a man who was arrested after a soldier at a U.S. military base called Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on the pizza delivery man while he was working in Brooklyn earlier this week.
\u201cI join @JustinBrannan and @TheNYIC in seeking answers over the arrest of Pablo Villavicencio, a husband, father, and hard-working New Yorker who went from delivering a pizza to #FortHamilton to being detained by @ICEGov. This is not making our city safer.\u201d— Eric Adams (@Eric Adams) 1528301195
The arrest of Pablo Villavicencio--who is married to a U.S. citizen and is the father of two young daughters--was "sending shock waves throughout the immigrant community," said Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams at a press conference on Wednesday.
Villavicencio was delivering a pizza to Fort Hamilton Army Base on Friday, June 1, when a soldier asked to see his identification. According to City University of New York professor Angus Johnston, Villavicencio presented a New York City ID card, which was introduced in 2015 to benefit community members who are unable to apply for driver's licenses, including undocumented immigrants. When the ID he presented was deemed insufficient, the soldier called immigration officials to detain him.
\u201cCity council member @JustinBrannan tells me this is the first time he knows of that someone with @IDNYC has been taken by ICE.\u201d— Angus Johnston (@Angus Johnston) 1528291853
\u201cThe @IDNYC system was set up specifically to allow undocumented New Yorkers to function in their daily lives. If the military is targeting @IDNYC holders now, it\u2019s going to be a major crisis.\u201d— Angus Johnston (@Angus Johnston) 1528292083
\u201cFrom what I\u2019ve been told, Pablo Villavicencio showed his @IDNYC, as he always he\u2019d before at the base, and the MP demanded a driver\u2019s license. This is exactly what\u2019s not supposed to happen.\u201d— Angus Johnston (@Angus Johnston) 1528292678
Villavicencio reportedly had a green card application underway at the time of his arrest.
His wife, Sandra Chica, attended a press conference held by Adams and City Council member Justin Brannan outside Fort Hamilton. She has raised concerns that her husband will be deported to his home country of Ecuador if quick action is not taken.
"How is it possible that now, in New York City, soldiers are changing their role to that of intermediaries for immigration agents?" Chica said to the Spanish-language newspaper El Diario.
In the sanctuary city of New York, undocumented immigrants are supposed to be protected from arrest if they report crimes. But still, under President Donald Trump, arrests of undocumented immigrants who have commited no crime have more than tripled.
A march in support of Villavicencio is planned for Wednesday evening, and his wife has set up a Go Fund Me account to gather donations for the family.
"We are outraged by the fact that an agency whose job is to keep us 'safe' would directly contribute to harming a fellow human being who was simply doing his job," wrote the march's co-organizers, including South Brooklyn Democratic Socialists of America, Fight Back Bay Ridge, and South Brooklyn Progressive Resistance. "When someone is unjustly and immorally detained, especially because of a government agency, it requires a strong community response."
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. Join with us today! |
Local officials in New York are demanding the release of a man who was arrested after a soldier at a U.S. military base called Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on the pizza delivery man while he was working in Brooklyn earlier this week.
\u201cI join @JustinBrannan and @TheNYIC in seeking answers over the arrest of Pablo Villavicencio, a husband, father, and hard-working New Yorker who went from delivering a pizza to #FortHamilton to being detained by @ICEGov. This is not making our city safer.\u201d— Eric Adams (@Eric Adams) 1528301195
The arrest of Pablo Villavicencio--who is married to a U.S. citizen and is the father of two young daughters--was "sending shock waves throughout the immigrant community," said Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams at a press conference on Wednesday.
Villavicencio was delivering a pizza to Fort Hamilton Army Base on Friday, June 1, when a soldier asked to see his identification. According to City University of New York professor Angus Johnston, Villavicencio presented a New York City ID card, which was introduced in 2015 to benefit community members who are unable to apply for driver's licenses, including undocumented immigrants. When the ID he presented was deemed insufficient, the soldier called immigration officials to detain him.
\u201cCity council member @JustinBrannan tells me this is the first time he knows of that someone with @IDNYC has been taken by ICE.\u201d— Angus Johnston (@Angus Johnston) 1528291853
\u201cThe @IDNYC system was set up specifically to allow undocumented New Yorkers to function in their daily lives. If the military is targeting @IDNYC holders now, it\u2019s going to be a major crisis.\u201d— Angus Johnston (@Angus Johnston) 1528292083
\u201cFrom what I\u2019ve been told, Pablo Villavicencio showed his @IDNYC, as he always he\u2019d before at the base, and the MP demanded a driver\u2019s license. This is exactly what\u2019s not supposed to happen.\u201d— Angus Johnston (@Angus Johnston) 1528292678
Villavicencio reportedly had a green card application underway at the time of his arrest.
His wife, Sandra Chica, attended a press conference held by Adams and City Council member Justin Brannan outside Fort Hamilton. She has raised concerns that her husband will be deported to his home country of Ecuador if quick action is not taken.
"How is it possible that now, in New York City, soldiers are changing their role to that of intermediaries for immigration agents?" Chica said to the Spanish-language newspaper El Diario.
In the sanctuary city of New York, undocumented immigrants are supposed to be protected from arrest if they report crimes. But still, under President Donald Trump, arrests of undocumented immigrants who have commited no crime have more than tripled.
A march in support of Villavicencio is planned for Wednesday evening, and his wife has set up a Go Fund Me account to gather donations for the family.
"We are outraged by the fact that an agency whose job is to keep us 'safe' would directly contribute to harming a fellow human being who was simply doing his job," wrote the march's co-organizers, including South Brooklyn Democratic Socialists of America, Fight Back Bay Ridge, and South Brooklyn Progressive Resistance. "When someone is unjustly and immorally detained, especially because of a government agency, it requires a strong community response."
Local officials in New York are demanding the release of a man who was arrested after a soldier at a U.S. military base called Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on the pizza delivery man while he was working in Brooklyn earlier this week.
\u201cI join @JustinBrannan and @TheNYIC in seeking answers over the arrest of Pablo Villavicencio, a husband, father, and hard-working New Yorker who went from delivering a pizza to #FortHamilton to being detained by @ICEGov. This is not making our city safer.\u201d— Eric Adams (@Eric Adams) 1528301195
The arrest of Pablo Villavicencio--who is married to a U.S. citizen and is the father of two young daughters--was "sending shock waves throughout the immigrant community," said Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams at a press conference on Wednesday.
Villavicencio was delivering a pizza to Fort Hamilton Army Base on Friday, June 1, when a soldier asked to see his identification. According to City University of New York professor Angus Johnston, Villavicencio presented a New York City ID card, which was introduced in 2015 to benefit community members who are unable to apply for driver's licenses, including undocumented immigrants. When the ID he presented was deemed insufficient, the soldier called immigration officials to detain him.
\u201cCity council member @JustinBrannan tells me this is the first time he knows of that someone with @IDNYC has been taken by ICE.\u201d— Angus Johnston (@Angus Johnston) 1528291853
\u201cThe @IDNYC system was set up specifically to allow undocumented New Yorkers to function in their daily lives. If the military is targeting @IDNYC holders now, it\u2019s going to be a major crisis.\u201d— Angus Johnston (@Angus Johnston) 1528292083
\u201cFrom what I\u2019ve been told, Pablo Villavicencio showed his @IDNYC, as he always he\u2019d before at the base, and the MP demanded a driver\u2019s license. This is exactly what\u2019s not supposed to happen.\u201d— Angus Johnston (@Angus Johnston) 1528292678
Villavicencio reportedly had a green card application underway at the time of his arrest.
His wife, Sandra Chica, attended a press conference held by Adams and City Council member Justin Brannan outside Fort Hamilton. She has raised concerns that her husband will be deported to his home country of Ecuador if quick action is not taken.
"How is it possible that now, in New York City, soldiers are changing their role to that of intermediaries for immigration agents?" Chica said to the Spanish-language newspaper El Diario.
In the sanctuary city of New York, undocumented immigrants are supposed to be protected from arrest if they report crimes. But still, under President Donald Trump, arrests of undocumented immigrants who have commited no crime have more than tripled.
A march in support of Villavicencio is planned for Wednesday evening, and his wife has set up a Go Fund Me account to gather donations for the family.
"We are outraged by the fact that an agency whose job is to keep us 'safe' would directly contribute to harming a fellow human being who was simply doing his job," wrote the march's co-organizers, including South Brooklyn Democratic Socialists of America, Fight Back Bay Ridge, and South Brooklyn Progressive Resistance. "When someone is unjustly and immorally detained, especially because of a government agency, it requires a strong community response."
