Requesting Humanitarian Parole
Pastor Jay and Other Arizona Clergy Visit ICE Offices
Last Thursday, I was invited to speak at the Phoenix ICE Offices to request the Humanitarian Medical Parole of one of six detainees at Florence Detention Center to be released. The story I shared is of Lazaro Campos Izquierdo.
Here is his story:
He has been detained for 3 months.
He is a man suffering from one of the most serious and life-threatening terminal neurodegenerative diseases—Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis otherwise known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. This condition attacks the nerve cells that control movement, gradually taking away a person’s ability to walk, use their hands, speak, swallow, and eventually breathe. It requires consistent medical care, mobility support, and careful monitoring.
When he was first detained about 4 months ago, he was able to walk. Since then, he has lost most of the use of his right side, can only stand for a few minutes, and is now largely confined to a wheelchair.
He is not receiving the proper medication or treatment for his condition. His health is rapidly deteriorating.
Medical experts recognize that ALS is progressive and irreversible, and that without proper care, decline can accelerate dramatically.
He is living through that decline now.
Despite this, he remains detained.
He is not a danger to anyone.
He is a man with a severe medical condition in need of care, not confinement.
We are asking for his release.
We are asking for humanitarian parole.
Because no one facing a disease like this should be left without proper care.
Upon finishing reading the story, I was also asked to share a faith statement:
Allow me to address those Christians who work for ICE. Let all with ears to hear listen, as you tune your ears to the storytelling style of our Lord Jesus Christ, who spoke in parables. Perhaps you’ve heard a similar story.
A migrant from Guatemala was crossing the Sonoran Desert.
He became dehydrated and lay under the shade of a mesquite tree.
When out of the blue, a rancher came by and thought the migrant to be too far gone to help, and the herd was moving quickly. So the rancher moved along.
Then a hiker came by, beginning their record attempt at completing the Arizona trail, but was in too much a rush to stop.
But then came an ice agent.
The ice agent took pity on the migrant. Gave him water, gave him drink, and first aid.
The ICE agent took the man to the nearest hospital, and said, the government will take care of his medical bills.
Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the desert?
The one who took pity.
Go and do likewise.
To my Christian brothers and sisters in those offices, that story doesn’t need to remain a parable.
(I turned directly to the offices) Which one of you in those offices will be the Good Ice Agent?
We then attempted to deliver a letter to the ICE Officials, who rejected it. And we wait to see if any of the folks we requested the release of are set free.
Please pray, but most importantly, turn your prayer into action, and seek the release of
● Maria Cristina Tapia Cornejo
● Marivel Otilia Lopez-Garcia
● Arbella “Yari” Rodríguez Márquez
● Ruslan Makhmudov
● Ana Silvia Granados Sanchez
● Isabel Ramirez Ramos
● Lazaro Campos Izquierdo
These people are not a danger to anyone and are deserving of compassion and dignity.
Thank you, Corazon Arizona (An Interfaith Multi-Racial People’s Movement), for your work.
Some coverage from local news: