Illustration: Miguel Arzabe
Floricel Liborio Ramos, a single mother of 3 children, was separated from her children and denied freedom for over 11 months. She vividly retells what would have been an ordinary Sunday breakfast at IHOP that turned into a horrible nightmare.
"When you’re in detention, they own you. You’re impotent. They take a hold of you. And that’s where the uncertainty comes in. You don’t know if it will be weeks, months, or years until they make a decision. It becomes difficult to tell reality from fiction. It changes your state of mind. It’s like you are dead, but actually you are alive. It’s like when they put meat in the freezer. You’re stuck in time."
Since Floricel's release in March of this year, she has used her voice to speak out against ICE's vile tactics and the horrendous detention conditions immigrants are subjected to. Read more here: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jul/16/what-its-like-when-ice-detains-you-they-own-you-youre-impotent