Community Groups, Elected Officials Demand Release of Philippine National Detained by ICE In New Jersey

Community Groups, Elected Officials Demand Release of Philippine National Detained by ICE In New Jersey, Condemn Trump's Fascist Attacks on Migrants

Jersey City, New Jersey - Community organizations and elected officials are demanding the immediate release of Raul Raagas or "Kuya Raul" who is currently detained by ICE at the CoreCivic Elizabeth Detention Center (EDC) in Newark. On July 24th Raagas was driving to work in Kearny, NJ when he was unjustly stopped, arrested, and later transferred to an ICE processing center before being moved again to EDC.

The Filipino Community Stands With Kuya Raul and All Migrants Against State Fascism in the U.S.

Raagas, 63, lives in Jersey City with his wife, Janet, and two children. He migrated from the Philippines to the United States where he has been living for over 30 years. He is a member of NASTU Local 741 for waste management laborers.

"Anyone who knows Raul knows how kind and strong a person he is. He's always there when you need him, and he's always there to listen. He's a role model to my sister and me. It hurts my heart every hour he is not home. We need him here; we can't rest without knowing that he's okay," said Jonovan, Kuya Raul's son.

"Truth be told, I am in a lot of pain. Raul is a good person, good father, kind, he's a good provider. He pays due diligence, through his labor power and taxes - he contributes to the American economy," said Janet, Kuya Raul's wife.

Raul Raagas is my constituent and my kababayan — a devoted father and husband who has spent more than three decades building his life in this country and this city, only to be torn from his family and held in a detention cell,” said Jersey City Councilman-at-Large Rolando Lavarro. “I’ve spoken with his wife, formally urged the court to grant him bond, and called on my colleagues at every level of government to stand with him. I’m grateful to stand alongside Assemblymember Raga and the community advocates fighting for Raul’s freedom. His case is not isolated: hardworking, deeply rooted families across our state and country are being torn apart the same way, and it is wrong. Raul belongs home with his family, and I demand an end to his detention and an immigration system rooted in due process, fairness, and basic human dignity.” 

“I call on ICE to immediately release Raul Raagas and return him to his family and community,” said NYS Assembly Member Steven Raga, who represents the Little Manila district in Woodside, Queens. “It is unconscionable that Raul—a 63-year-old father of two and cherished member of his community for decades—was taken into ICE custody after being stopped for an alleged minor traffic infraction. He should be home with his family, not in ICE detention, where 51 of our neighbors have died since the beginning of the Trump administration. I will never stop standing with fellow elected officials like Councilman Lavarro and community advocates like Tanggol Migrante Northeast in the fight for immigrant justice and due process. Raul deserves fair treatment, dignity, and the opportunity to be with his family while his case proceeds. I demand that ICE respect his constitutional and legal rights and end his detention immediately.”

The Tanggol Migrante Movement is an alliance of organizations from across the U.S. dedicated to defending and protecting Filipinos facing attacks under the Trump administration and beyond. The alliance engages in collective action. in various ways: joint education, resource sharing, legal and health services, fundraising, advocacy work, and building public pressure to push forward the demands of the most impacted.

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