Students from Ooltewah High School hosts fundraiser to help local teen detained by ICE

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – Wrapping up our coverage on Daniel Garzon Romero, the recent graduate of Ooltewah High School who is currently in ICE custody after waiting four years to enter an asylum program, students at his school organized a fundraiser to help cover legal fees.

Students, teachers, friends, and family members gathered in support of Romero, saying they simply want him returned home.

The family spoke through translators, including Romero’s teacher, Rebekah Langford, who helped translate as Daniel described his situation from detention.

“My message is that we should not hide because we are not doing anything wrong,” Romero stated. “We are only trying to have a better life so that we can be happy and stay together.”

In translated audio while being in an ICE detention center, Romero explained what he says led to his arrest.

“I had four weeks of an error with the photos that I was supposed to upload into the app, and they didn’t care,” Romero said. “Even though I had proof on my phone, they didn’t let me show them anything. They arrested me.”

Langford described Romero as a student who made a positive impact on everyone around him.

“Whenever he comes into a room, everyone loves him because he is such a calm and fun-loving person,” Langford elaborated. “He thinks about others. He has never complained about people or spoken negatively about anyone. I cannot recall a time when he said anything hateful or rude about another person.”

One of the student organizers, who requested to remain anonymous, explained that she wanted to channel the situation into something meaningful for Romero and his family.

“We felt that if this came from a nonprofit, it would not fully express our point,” the student stated. “Our point was not that ICE is bad. Our point was that Daniel was our friend. Daniel is somebody’s son, and Daniel is part of this community. He is a hardworking person who was working toward his citizenship the right way.”

Another classmate, Savanna Moore, said the situation has encouraged her to be more empathetic toward others facing similar struggles.

“Being privileged enough not to worry about it for my own family gives me more room to care for other people and be empathetic. That is the least we can do.”

Langford defended Romero, saying he followed the process required of him.

“He had a Social Security card. He had a work authorization card. He did everything right. I don’t think people who came under another administration or different policies should be punished when that was the law or what was allowed at the time.”

As the fundraiser continues, supporters say their focus remains on helping Romero and his family through the legal process while hoping he can soon return home to his friends and family who continue to stand behind him.

TEXT MESSAGES TRANSLATED FROM LANGFORD:

“Saliendo de su zona de inclusión maestra”

→ “Leaving her inclusion area, teacher.”

“Buen día, quisiera informar que la aplicación de mi hijo se cerró y no pudo acceder nuevamente”

→ “Good morning, I would like to inform you that my son’s application closed and he was unable to access it again.”

“Hola como asi?”

→ “Hello, what do you mean?”

“Buena noche a el le dieron un usuario y una clave para ingresar, pero ayer mismo reviso la aplicación y se habia cerrado sesión cuando el intento ingresar con los datos que le dieron sale que son datos incorrectos”

→ “Good evening, they gave him a username and password to log in, but yesterday when he checked the application, it had logged him out. When he tried to log in with the information they gave him, it said the information was incorrect.”

“Buen dia acabamos de presentarnos en la oficina de chattanooga Tennessee pero no nos atendieron por que los de BI no estan aquí solo de lunes a miércoles”

→ “Good morning, we just went to the office in Chattanooga, Tennessee, but they did not help us because the BI staff are only here from Monday to Wednesday.”

“Ok entonces por favor valle el dia lunes a las 8 para que le puedan transferir el caso”

→ “Okay then, please come Monday at 8 so they can transfer the case.”

“También, le pueden ayudar a su hijo.”

→ “They can also help your son.”