I was reapplying for my work visa in the immigration office. I was doing everything completely legally. We went to Cancún for vacation with my family. When we came back, got out of the plane, they pulled me aside and I didn’t understand why. They said: “You need to reapply through the consulate and we need to send you back to Canada.” And in my head, I thought that meant: OK, I’m just getting on a plane and going home. I was never concerned. I had a green card. I traveled multiple times before out of the country. I was sitting there, looking for flights to go home, and I was taken. They were like: “We have to detain you.” With no explanation. It felt like I had been kidnapped. You’re kidnapping me. I was never in the country illegally. I did not come here illegally. Having a mother taken away from her kids, I felt like a knife was just like — it’s like stabbing my heart. I was taken to the first detention center in chains. When I got there, I was like: Where am I? It looks like a prison. There were 30 of us in one cell, just like a line of bunks and then open showers and toilets. If I wanted to use the bathroom, I feel violated. I was treated like a criminal, like I killed somebody. And every single time I asked a question, it was: “I’m not your case officer. I don’t know. I’m just doing my job.” Super cold. They nicknamed them the ICE boxes. We’re huddled, trying to stay warm, wrapped in these aluminum foils, looking like dead bodies. There’s no window that you can look outside. Fluorescent lights are shining 24/7. I couldn’t sleep. We kept hearing rats squeal, like, scream. One of the girls had her period, and there was blood everywhere. They knew I was on my menstrual cycle, but I was not offered to shower for five days. This nurse comes in, and she’s like: “Pregnancy test.” She made us pee in front of each other into these Dixie cups. We’re all just standing there in a circle, holding our open urine, and she’s plopping these pregnancy tests in and then being like: “OK, you guys are good. Chuck it back in the toilet.” The food was horrible. I ended up getting very sick. My body was really starting to shut down. I felt like, oh, my goodness, am I going to die here? I got woken up in the middle of the night, and they’re like: “Jasmine, you’re leaving.” I jumped up. I’m like: I’m going home? And they’re like: “We’re being transferred.” She said: “We’re going to transfer you to Maine.” I was like: Maine? “You’re going to Arizona.” I’m like: Why am I going to Arizona? I begged every single guard for help. Can you please tell anyone, your supervisor, that I would love to pay for my flight home? Just get me out of here. ICE issued a statement saying I was “detained for not having legal documentation to be in the U.S.” I do not support anyone being in a country illegally. I had all my paperwork. I was in the immigration office. I was never in the country illegally. It says “a green card is a privilege, not a right, and under our nation’s laws, our government has the authority to revoke a green card if a law is broken and abused.” In my early 20s, I was young. I was in college. I got in trouble for possession of marijuana. I was pardoned. It was dismissed. It’s been years. And I have renewed my green card twice. Never had an issue with immigration. “U.S.C.I.S. obtained evidence that indicated you provided material support to a Tier 3 terrorist organization.” I don’t feel like this was a mistake. I feel like this was on purpose. They are just grabbing anyone that they can. Not knowing what’s going to happen to me, it felt like that was the worst because I wanted just to call my husband. I wanted to hear my kids, that my kids are OK. During the time that I was there, it was also my daughter’s birthday. I feel like they took that away from me. I was scared they were going to forget me. I had a medical check, and I had to go visit this nurse. She could tell that I was distraught and confused, and she looked at me. And she goes: “Can I pray for you?” And she said this beautiful prayer in Spanish that I have no idea what she was saying. I just cried, and I cried. And I cried. And she just held my hands, and I was like: OK, I’m going to get through this. Where am I going? “Just pack your stuff.” I was transferred back to the San Diego prison. It was a two-hour drive. Someone just grabbed me and said: “You’re coming with me this way.” She’s like: “Yeah, Uncuff her. She’s being released today.” My eyes just like: What? They stripped the chains off of me quickly, snuck me into the airport, escort me onto the plane, sit me down, and they’re like: “OK, you’re free. You can use your cellphone now. Take care.” And they’re kind of like, “Outside.” And I did not know where to go. I didn’t have a phone. [ARABIC SPEAKING] “Peace be upon you, and the mercy and blessings of Allah.” I was happy to see my husband. I was more happy to see my girls, no offense. The youngest one was having nightmares and kept waking up. So I knew they needed me and just reassure them I’m OK, even though it’s still hard for me. It’s still fragile. I was so lucky to have only been in there for two weeks. Can you imagine someone in the system that doesn’t have my privilege, all the lawyers, all the money, all my connections? The majority of the women that I met have been in there for months. I received a five-year ban from America. Everyone asked me, they’re like: “Well, you’re never going to go back, are you?” I’m appealing. I want to go back. I love America. I am in the process now of getting my citizenship. Your government is funding a system that doesn’t follow any rules.
