Baby Mateo is safe! Help us release Jose now

1-Year-Old Baby Mateo Sign the Petition › Dear friends, We have good news and bad news. The good news is that 1-year-old baby Mateo, who was torn apart from his father Jose in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center, has been reunited with his mother. Unfortunately Jose remains in an ICE detention facility despite following all rules and procedures — take action now to demand Jose’s release. More than three months ago, Jose D.F. presented himself at the United States border with his son and immediately requested asylum. Jose and baby Mateo were fleeing the threat of targeted killings in their home country of El Salvador, and Jose and his wife made the impossible decision of splitting up the family so that Jose and Mateo could seek safety in the USA. After spending several days in a detention center with Customs and Border Patrol, border patrol officers transferred Jose and baby Mateo to ICE agents. These ICE agents denied Jose’s requests to use a phone and told him that his asylum claims would be compromised if he refused to surrender his son. Take action now if you agree: No one seeking refuge in the USA should be separated from their child. ICE agents demanded that Jose give up baby Mateo. Then they took Mateo from Jose without telling Jose where Mateo would be placed or when they would see each other again. Thankfully, baby Mateo is now back safe with his mother. Jose now waits in an ICE detention facility while his case is processed, with no sign of release or reunification with his family. ICE agents failed to meet basic standards of care for Jose and Mateo, which is a cruel violation of international immigration detention standards. Separation of families at the border needs to stop, take action and tell your members of Congress to ask ICE to stop forcibly separating families now! TAKE ACTION Margaret Huang Executive Director Amnesty International USA © 2017 Amnesty International USA 5 Penn Plaza, New York, NY 10001 | 1-800-AMNESTY