ICE arrests Kansas professor and father of three who has been in the U.S. for 30 years

Jamal and his three children.

On January 24, 2018, Syed Ahmed Jamal who is from Bangladesh was planning on taking his daughter to school like he did every morning when ICE officials showed up and arrested him and his brother Syed Hussain Jamal. Jamal’s wife tried to hug him goodbye, but ICE officials threatened to arrest her for “interfering” with their arrest. Jamal who is 55 years old is a chemistry professor and came to the US on an international student visa during the 1980s. Jamal tried throughout his years in the US to gain permanent citizenship, but the journey was challenging. He had been given student visas, and at one time was detained for overstaying a departure notice but was allowed to stay in the US under supervision. His family knew that one-day he might be deported but they never thought that day would end up coming, he was respected in their community, involved in his children's schools, and a very respected professor. He is being detained by ICE more than 150 miles away from his home and family, the reason he is being detained is that he overstayed a temporary visa in 2012 and did not listen to the orders of the judge when he was told to leave the US. His children are very affected by what is happening to their family, "My father called us, and he was crying like a little child because he was thinking about what would happen to us if he got deported," Taseen wrote.

Reading this article was very difficult because this is happening to many people all over the country. They are having their worlds flipped upside down, and their loved ones are being taken from them. Jamal has no prior criminal record, just a few speeding tickets that were handled. He was respected in his community and in his profession. He was causing no harm to anyone, yet he was taken from his family, detained by ICE, and more than likely going to be sent back to Bangladesh. Personally, this hit close to home because I do have family members that are here illegally and I worry every day that they will no longer be here and sent back to Mexico. The path to gaining citizenship has to be one of the more difficult things anyone can do, I know my family members have been trying for years. This isn't easy, and I feel like it is just going to get worse with time which is even more worrisome. I know my family members don't want to hide, and I'm sure other people don't want to hide either which makes it hard. It's a hard topic to discuss in class and at home, and watching the news and learning about these things does not make it easier. Being educated on what is happening is very important but at the same time difficult.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/ice-arrests-kansas-professor-father-three-who-has-been-u-n844746