Family with a child facing cancer is divided after father detained by ICE agents

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A Birmingham man, whose four-year-old daughter is battling cancer, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents during a routine immigration check-in two weeks ago. His wife said the father, a construction worker, faces deportation to Guatemala.

The father and mother are in the country without legal status although their daughter is a U.S. citizen. WBHM granted them anonymity because they fear for their safety. The mother spoke through an interpreter.

The mother said ICE agents gave no reason for detaining her husband, who she believes is now at a facility in Louisiana. She added their three kids worry their father is going to what has been called “Alligator Alcatraz,” a Florida-run facility currently facing allegations of human rights violations. She said she doesn’t know how to dissuade them of that fear. 

“They get very scared,” she said. “We’re just all very, very saddened and having a really, really difficult time.” 

Their four-year-old daughter was diagnosed with leukemia seven months ago. The mother called it the worst day of her life. But thanks in large part to her husband, their family was pulling closer together.

“He’s the one that really helped and supported me, and I him, during this difficult time for all of our family,” she said. “This is something that I wouldn’t wish on anyone to be going through.

Officers told him he could avoid arrest by agreeing to be deported to Guatemala within two weeks. They added if he didn’t fight deportation, he would not have any strikes against him on his immigration record and that he would be able to apply for a visa in Guatemala so he can come back to be with his family. 

“That option sounded really good to my husband because his main priority is being able to return to our family,” she said. “Especially our daughter, who is in the process of receiving cancer treatment.” 

The family’s attorney, Kimberly Fasking, was skeptical of the offer.

“What is that visa?” Fasking said. “It’s been kind of the thing that they’ve been promising to immigrants without a really clear outline of what that looks like.” 

Fasking said when he was detained, the father offered to buy the whole family plane tickets to leave the country as soon as possible. But agents rejected the offer. Fasking said she believes his detention is part of a larger goal from the Trump administration to detain 3,000 people a day.

The Department of Homeland Security issued a statement saying people in the country without legal  status who voluntarily self-deport will receive free travel and a $1,000 exit bonus. But returning to the country is difficult, and Fasking said the father’s chances of coming back with a visa anytime soon are very slim.

“They could have had mercy on this family and sent them all to immigration court together as a family,” Fasking said. “And they chose not to do that.”

For now, the mother is awaiting an immigration court date as her own deportation process begins. Fasking said the family faces a hard choice: whether to reunite their family in Guatemala or remain separated so their daughter can continue receiving her cancer treatments.