ICE is breaking public trust

Dylan Contreras did everything right.
The 20-year-old Venezuelan immigrant was a student at ELLIS Preparatory Academy, part of the John F. Kennedy campus in Marble Hill. He worked. He studied. He was also pursuing a path to legal permanent residency through the court system — doing what we ask of those trying to build a life here in America.

But when Contreras showed up to immigration court earlier this year, he didn’t find justice.

He found handcuffs.

Agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE, waited for him in the hallway. It wasn’t a raid, or a search or even an investigation. It was a trap. He walked into court to comply with the law and walked out in ICE custody.

Contreras’ case, though horrifying, is not unique. Nor is the outrage it sparked.

Just last week, State Sen. Gustavo Rivera — whose district includes parts of greater Riverdale — was arrested inside 26 Federal Plaza alongside New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and 10 other elected officials. They were protesting ICE’s tactics, including the very same courthouse arrests that tore Lopez-Contreras from his family and school.

Their demand was simple: end the fear. End the disappearances. End the practice of targeting New Yorkers who are following the law, simply because of their immigration status.

Instead, they were met with zip ties.

According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 71 people were arrested at the Sept. 18 protest. DHS officials called them “agitators,” and accused them of obstructing law enforcement and “pulling a stunt.” ICE officials defended their actions by pointing to a handful of detainees inside the building with serious criminal records.

But no one protesting was demanding the release of armed criminals. They were demanding accountability, transparency and above all, humanity.

They were demanding that people like Lopez-Contreras not be treated like fugitives for showing up to court.

We live in a country that says it values the rule of law. That courts are sacred. That education is a right. That due process matters. But all those principles fall apart when a student like Lopez-Contreras is ambushed in the very building that’s supposed to determine his legal future.

“This is the first time I’m getting arrested, but it’s nothing in comparison to what thousands of New Yorkers are experiencing when getting literally kidnapped off the streets or in the courthouse by ICE,” Rivera said in a statement after his arrest. 

He’s right. Contreras was taken in front of his family. His future, and his faith in this country now hangs in the balance.

For immigrant communities across the Bronx, the message is clear: compliance does not equal safety. Showing up in good faith may still get you locked up. The government is no longer a neutral arbiter — it’s a threat.

That loss of trust is devastating. It means students may stop attending school. Witnesses may stop cooperating with police. Families may avoid hospitals and public services, for fear of being tracked, targeted or detained.

ICE may claim to be protecting America. But when its actions drive people away from the very institutions that hold our society together, then it’s not protecting anything. It’s undermining everything.

This isn’t just about Contreras. It’s about values.

When we criminalize showing up, we invite fear to replace civic participation. When we make courtrooms into ambush zones, we turn the rule of law into a weapon. And when elected officials who speak out are arrested and smeared for “stunts,” we degrade the very democracy we claim to uphold.

This is not a partisan issue. It is a moral one.

The Bronx has long been home to people seeking better lives — from Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Ghana, Bangladesh, Albania and beyond. Their contributions are part of the fabric of this borough, from its delis and diners to its hospitals and classrooms. 

Dylan is part of that fabric. 

So are all the families who now wonder whether ICE might be lurking outside the next courtroom, school building or apartment door.

ICE isn’t just enforcing the law. It’s breaking the trust that makes law work.

And once that trust is gone, it’s not easy to get back.