AUSTIN – A Texas congressman is calling for the release of a 5-year-old boy he says was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on his way to a soccer game in Austin.
In a Facebook post, Rep. Greg Casar said, “ICE just arrested a 5-year-old on his way to a soccer game in Austin. His name is Liam, just like the little boy from Minnesota. He should be in kindergarten this week. Instead, he’s in a trailer prison in the desert.”
In a video accompanying the post, Casar said the boy was arrested “on his way to a soccer game in my home city of Austin, Texas,” and that the child “should be starting kindergarten this week.” Casar said the boy is “sitting in a trailer prison right now in Dilley, Texas.”
Casar said he is “calling for the immediate release of Liam, the immediate release of all of these kids, and for the closure of the Dilley Trailer Prison because kids should be playing soccer, going to school, living their lives, not being arrested on the streets.”
Casar also alleged broader family separations, saying, “And remember, the Trump administration is separating families.” He added, “Is doing this to kids using money that they took away from kids’ health care, from the kids’ school lunch program. They’re using that money to target our families, and it’s got to stop. And we’re going to make it stop together.”
Casar ended his Facebook post with: “Release Liam. Release these kids. Close the Dilley children’s prison.”