A group of young immigrants known as the “Dream 9” have been released from a detention centre in Arizona, the Los Angeles Times reports. The group was released on August 7th after having been arrested on July 22nd, while they were trying to raise awareness of the number of people who have been deported from the United States while Obama has been President.
The individuals were released on parole and have been permitted to go back to their homes in the United States until such time as they can make a legal argument for asylum. They were taken to Tucson to be released after having been held at the Eloy Detention Centre, with a source saying that when they got off the bus they were met by fellow activists for immigrant rights.
The demonstration that resulted in their arrest involved an attempt to cross the border to return to the United States, with the Los Angeles Times saying that the women who got off the bus were still wearing the same graduation gowns they had had on when they were detained. “Dream 9” is a reference to the DREAM Act, legislation that would offer a path to US citizenship for undocumented immigrants who arrived in the US when they were children.
Immigration officers have said that the individuals cannot be immediately deported from the United States as they have a credible fear of being tortured or persecuted in Mexico.