Just weeks after earning his high school diploma at Gilbert A Dater High School, 19-year-old Emerson Colindres was taken by ICE. Not only did he have no criminal record, he was a beloved friend and talented soccer player. His coach says that “Emerson’s one of the best kids I’ve ever met.”
Emerson moved to the US with his family when he was 8 years old. They were looking for safety after fleeing gang violence in Honduras and soon became valued members of their Cincinnati suburb. When he arrived to a meeting at his local immigration office, ICE officers immediately arrested him and took him to a detention center.
His soccer teammates have rallied behind him, but it’s unclear what Emerson’s fate will be.
“I was the last person who saw him, I got to hug him goodbye,” one of his teammates said. “I wish I hugged him longer. Because I didn’t know that would be the last time I was going to see him.”
Share this post