Jeanette Vizguerra, a Colorado advocate for immigrants who sheltered in a church for months in 2017, was detained by officials on Monday, local advocates said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition demanded<\/u><\/a> the immediate release of Vizguerra after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained her at her workplace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cJeanette is a pilar of the community and has supported countless families,\u201d the organization said in a statement. \u201cICE had no reason to detain her\u2014this cruel and unnecessary action is causing irreparable harm to her family and community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The group said it was clear Vizguerra was targeted for her criticism of deportation and her advocacy for the immigrant community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cICE\u2019s actions raise serious due process concerns, and her attorneys are working to correct the legal errors behind her detention,\u201d the organization said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During President Trump\u2019s\u2002<\/u><\/a>first term, Vizguerra lived in a church<\/u><\/a> in Colorado for 86 days to take sanctuary from immigration agents. Her stay of removal was granted by ICE.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She immigrated to Colorado in 1997 after her husband was held at gunpoint in Mexico City. She has four children, one of whom is a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipient and the other three are U.S. citizens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vizguerra was featured in Time\u2019s 100 most influential people<\/u><\/a> list in 2017 and said she would continue her activism work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Denver Mayor Mike Johnston addressed Vizguerra\u2019s detainment<\/u><\/a> on Tuesday, slamming it as a \u201cPutin-style persecution.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is not immigration enforcement. This is a Soviet-style political persecution of political dissidents under the guise of immigration enforcement,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is not someone with a criminal record. This is a mom of American citizens who works at Target and has started a community nonprofit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is not something that makes our community safer,\u201d Johnston said, pointing to the Trump administration\u2019s crackdown on migrant crime. \u201cIn my mind, I think it makes our community lawless.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jardon Garcia, a family friend of Vizguerra\u2019s, told The Washington Post<\/u><\/a> that Vizguerra had been in touch with her children and is \u201cdoing okay.\u201d She knew she would be a target of the new Trump administration and had kept a relatively low profile in recent years as she continued to navigate her own legal process, Garcia said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Colorado Gov. Jared Polis\u2002<\/u><\/a>(D) called on the Trump administration<\/u><\/a> to show transparency Vizguerra\u2019s detainment, noting that she has no history of violence and is not a threat to the community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He said the state had not been notified of Vizguerra\u2019s arrest and wants ICE to focus on detaining violent offenders. He noted that various arrests have an impact on taxpayer dollars and Vizguerra deserves due process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Hill has reached out to the White House and the Denver field office of ICE.<\/p>\n\n\n\n