More than 70 teachers, students and community leaders gathered on the steps of the Los Angeles Unified School District on Tuesday to demand the release of a San Fernando Valley high school senior from federal immigration custody, and an end to detainments targeting schools and students.
The crowd chanted “Bring Benjy home” in support of 18-year-old Benjamin Marcelo Guerrero Cruz, who community members said was detained by masked officers and placed in an unmarked vehicle while walking his family dog in the early morning on Aug. 8.
The Department of Homeland Security told KTLA that the teen is an undocumented immigrant from Chile who overstayed his visa for two years.
“He is in detention. He should be in a classroom with us,” Liz Becerra, one of Guerrero Cruz’s former teachers, said at Tuesday night’s rally.
Guerrero Cruz, a resident of Van Nuys, was to enter his senior year at Reseda Charter High School last week.
Becerra drove two hours to visit Guerrero Cruz at an immigration detention center in Adelanto, where he told her that the people who took him were asking for another person. When he clarified that he wasn’t that person, authorities said they still needed to bring him in for fingerprinting and questioning, he told Becerra.
Guerrero Cruz told his former teacher he was transferred to various facilities, including the Metropolitan Detention Center, before he was taken to the Adelanto facility.
In that time, he said he was placed in a cell with upwards of 20 men and wasn’t allowed to shower, change his clothes or brush his teeth for a week.
Guerrero Cruz told Becerra that he lost 20 pounds that week. He’s anxious and afraid for himself and his family, Becerra said.
As their visit ended, Becerra said she saw Guerrero Cruz cry.
Educators are calling on LAUSD and Superintendent Alberto Carvalho to dedicate district resources and attorneys to help any student taken by immigration authorities. United Teachers of Los Angeles President Cecily Myart-Cruz said Carvalho should also be calling for the immediate release of Guerrero Cruz and any other student who is detained.
Less than a week into the school year, Claudia Rojas, one of Guerrero Cruz’s former teachers, said there’s a fear among students that they could be taken next.
A GoFundMe to support Guerrero Cruz’s family and cover legal fees had raised more than $51,000 as of Tuesday evening. LAUSD also is providing legal assistance to the family, Carvalho said during a news conference on Aug. 14.
At home, Guerrero Cruz helped care for his three brothers, a six-year-old and twins who are five months old, the GoFundMe said.
18-year-old high school senior walking the family dog is arrested by immigration officers in Van Nuys
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