At his June 20 court hearing, Maximo “Kuya Max” Londonio was granted a continuance and affirmed his fight against his threat of deportation.
This was despite escalated hostility from ICE and receiving legal representation only days before the hearing.
Tanggol Migrante Network and community allies rallied 90 people outside the Northwest Detention Center (NWDC) to demand Kuya Max’s immediate release.
Recently, GEO Group guards unjustly profiled Kuya Max and reprocessed him into a higher level of security. There, he was placed in a segregated room, essentially isolated from others and the community he had built in his previous unit. He is unable to leave his room and is only given a plastic sheet to sleep on.
“We sent a message to the ATN number and Bernice [Santanaya, an ATN officer] to tell them that he was being profiled. So they have documentation on their end,” Crystal Londonio, Max’s wife of 20 years, said.
“It surprises me that they aren’t putting 2 + 2 together. Their job is to be able to weed out the injustice that is happening. Don’t be afraid to stand up for what is right. It’s a matter of common sense.”
Jhem of BAYAN Washington said that the Philippine Consulate must do its job.
“The Consulate must intervene immediately for Kuya Max’s safety and demand his immediate removal from segregation, in addition to his immediate removal from ICE detention,” Jhem said.
Meanwhile, the efforts of Tanggol Migrante and the Londonio family have proven effective. Within two days of Max’s wrongful transfer, they gathered over 900 signatures demanding his release and secured a lawyer to help fight his case.
The petition was sent to Washington State Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal and the Philippine Consulate. Within hours of receipt, the Northwest Immigration Rights Project assigned Max an attorney.
Jenilee from the National Alliance for Filipino Concerns added, “We have been assisting families with legal support, filling out assistance to nationals [forms] and providing what the Consulate is supposed to provide.”
In contrast, the Philippine Consulate stated they could only release $300 in Assistance to Nationals (ATN) funds to Kuya Max’s commissary, offering it only after the mounting community pressure.
This transfer into segregation occurred after Kuya Max met with Congresswoman Jayapal and two other representatives.
He urgently called to light the NWDC’s inhumane conditions, including spoiled food and family separation. He has stood up for other migrants as well, showing his character of being a man of the people, fighting for his community and not just himself.
Tanggol Migrante and the Londonios claim that the transfer is clearly an act of retaliation for exposing the NWDC and fighting for the other 1,600 detainees.
Rodante “Kuya Dante” Rivera was detained in the general population and was in Max’s unit. Because of Max’s initiative to connect him to Tanggol Migrante, Kuya Dante was released from the NWDC last week.
Upon hearing about the retaliation, Dante wrote a letter of support:
“Though I’ve only known Max a short time, he’s a good person. I’ve seen it. He always puts others before himself, helping others, and talks of nothing but his family. He’s a genuinely good person and deserves to be released.”
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