Letter from Boyd Richards

Note to Trump: ICE, Be Not Proud

“I am embarrassed to call myself an American.”

I spontaneously—yet with deep conviction—said these words a month ago, as I was leaving the ICE check-in center outside of Albany. An hour earlier, I had entered the facility with Pedro Mieles, a close friend, and a hard-working, law abiding, contributing member of the Cooperstown’s community.

For months, my wife and I had the privilege of giving Pedro a ride to church every Sunday morning to attend the Oneonta Branch of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. During these rides, I learned about Pedro’s kids and how much he missed them; I learned that Pedro had come to the U.S. a year ago to seek asylum, as a last resort, to escape criminals who had over several months made multiple attempts on his life after he had witnessed them murder his friend.

When entering the country, Pedro was granted a hearing with an immigration judge in 2027 and given permission to live and work in the U.S. while awaiting that hearing. In return, Pedro has worked, paid taxes, and provided modest support for his family in Ecuador.

Pedro was also required to check in with ICE at regular intervals, which is why I had given him a ride to Albany.

Trump’s ICE has suddenly changed the rules on Pedro, and many hard-working immigrants like him. Rather than laboring in our community, these law-abiding members of our community are sitting in crowded detention centers, awaiting an uncertain future. Indeed, this is not the America I am proud to be a part of.

Boyd Richards
Cooperstown