Update, 5 p.m.: Lizbeth Mateo and Marco Saavedra, along with the rest of the Dream 9, are now eligible for asylum.
A group of young undocumented immigrants who sought to cross the border in Arizona several weeks ago moved a step closer to a possible release from custody on Monday.
See Also: DREAMers Cross the Border to Raise Awareness About Deportations
The Dream 9, as the young people call themselves, entered the U.S. from Mexico to protest immigration policies that have deported more than 1.6 million people since 2009.
Seven of the nine DREAMers were able to show that they have a "credible fear" of returning to their home country, a step forward in their request for asylum, according to the National Immigrant Youth Alliance (NIYA), the group that organized the action.
The status of the other two DREAMers, Marco Saavedra and Lizbeth Mateo, has not yet been disclosed.
Meanwhile, all nine young people remain in custody at the Eloy Detention Center in Arizona as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) decides whether to release them while they fight their cases.
ICE declined a request for comment.
"Since their credible fear test has been passed, there is no reason for them to wait months and months to be released," NIYA organizer Mohammad Abdollahi said last night at a vigil in front of the detention center. "These folks are not a flight risk. They all were trying to come into the country."
At the vigil, more than a dozen family members and supporters stood in a circle, praying for the detained. Among them was one mother whose son was not with the Dream 9 but had since sought their support regarding his deportation case. "I know that you feel our pain," she said in a prayer, her voice trembling.
The action has brought more deportee cases to light, according to organizers. And the Dream 9 have helped migrants connect with legal support, even while in detention themselves.
Abdollahi said that they have been presented with 46 cases, and they plan to help those detainees seek release.
Meanwhile, the Dream 9 also organized a two-day hunger strike in the detention center, and were joined by 70 other women, according to Abdollahi.
At the moment, he said there are a dozen women who are on a partial fast, eating only one meal a day and refusing to go outside or buy anything from the store in the detention center.
"They are doing an all-around boycott of sorts," Abdollahi said.
But the action has not gone without retaliation from prison officials. Dream 9 detainee Claudia Amaro said in a phone interview on Monday that there has been a backlash against inmates who've tried to connect with the DREAMers. "Every girl that approached us, [the guards] interview them, they harass them and ask what we were talking about," said the 37-year-old.
And as a result of their organizing, some of the Dream 9 have been confined to solitary confinement, which means they are restricted to their cells 23 hours a day.
One of the DREAMers, María Peniche, remains on suicide watch after dropping into depression due to the restriction.
Peniche is currently serving 15 days in solitary confinement after jumping up along with fellow DREAMer, Lulu Martínez, during dinnertime and beginning a chant of "Undocumented! Unafraid!" in Spanish, according to Colorlines.
A group of young undocumented immigrants who sought to cross the border in Arizona several weeks ago moved a step closer to a possible release from custody on Monday.
See Also: DREAMers Cross the Border to Raise Awareness About Deportations
The Dream 9, as the young people call themselves, entered the U.S. from Mexico to protest immigration policies that have deported more than 1.6 million people since 2009.
Seven of the nine DREAMers were able to show that they have a "credible fear" of returning to their home country, a step forward in their request for asylum, according to the National Immigrant Youth Alliance (NIYA), the group that organized the action.
The status of the other two DREAMers, Marco Saavedra and Lizbeth Mateo, has not yet been disclosed.
Meanwhile, all nine young people remain in custody at the Eloy Detention Center in Arizona as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) decides whether to release them while they fight their cases.
ICE declined a request for comment.
"Since their credible fear test has been passed, there is no reason for them to wait months and months to be released," NIYA organizer Mohammad Abdollahi said last night at a vigil in front of the detention center. "These folks are not a flight risk. They all were trying to come into the country."
At the vigil, more than a dozen family members and supporters stood in a circle, praying for the detained. Among them was one mother whose son was not with the Dream 9 but had since sought their support regarding his deportation case. "I know that you feel our pain," she said in a prayer, her voice trembling.
The action has brought more deportee cases to light, according to organizers. And the Dream 9 have helped migrants connect with legal support, even while in detention themselves.
Abdollahi said that they have been presented with 46 cases, and they plan to help those detainees seek release.
Meanwhile, the Dream 9 also organized a two-day hunger strike in the detention center, and were joined by 70 other women, according to Abdollahi.
At the moment, he said there are a dozen women who are on a partial fast, eating only one meal a day and refusing to go outside or buy anything from the store in the detention center.
"They are doing an all-around boycott of sorts," Abdollahi said.
But the action has not gone without retaliation from prison officials. Dream 9 detainee Claudia Amaro said in a phone interview on Monday that there has been a backlash against inmates who've tried to connect with the DREAMers. "Every girl that approached us, [the guards] interview them, they harass them and ask what we were talking about," said the 37-year-old.
And as a result of their organizing, some of the Dream 9 have been confined to solitary confinement, which means they are restricted to their cells 23 hours a day.
One of the DREAMers, María Peniche, remains on suicide watch after dropping into depression due to the restriction.
Peniche is currently serving 15 days in solitary confinement after jumping up along with fellow DREAMer, Lulu Martínez, during dinnertime and beginning a chant of "Undocumented! Unafraid!" in Spanish, according to Colorlines.
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