ICE deports deaf children and families to Colombia without assistive devices: ‘Humans should stop them…’

The boy, his five-year-old brother and their mother, Lesly Rodriguez Gutierrez, were detained Tuesday while reporting to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office, a program that requires regular inspections, according to the Alameda County Immigration Legal and Education Partnership.

The family was then deported to Colombia.

Advocates say the six-year-old deaf child uses a cochlear implant but does not receive the assistive devices he needs to help him communicate. A relative waiting outside the building tried unsuccessfully to pass on the devices, and immigration authorities detained the family.

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“No child should be removed from their home community and hidden in a detention center, especially a deaf child who is deprived of the ability to communicate and understand what is happening to them,” Thurmond said in a statement.

In a letter to federal authorities, Thurmond also emphasized that the student had been receiving specialized instruction designed for his language and learning needs. The boy communicates primarily through American Sign Language (ASL), and educators say exposure to this environment is critical to his development.

“There are good humanitarian reasons why they should not be deported,” he said, according to The Guardian. “Whatever the circumstances of the deportation, humanity should prevent them from sending a six-year-old child into a life-threatening situation.”

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The Gutierrez family’s legal team had difficulty determining where Gutierrez and her children were being held after their arrest, according to attorneys. Officials initially said the family could be transferred to a detention facility in Louisiana or Phoenix, Arizona, before they are eventually deported.

teachers and school staff in california Said the boy had only recently begun to develop communication skills through American Sign Language and specialized educational support. They warned that losing these resources could affect his ability to continue learning and expressing himself.