After living in ICE detention in Texas for months, a Roosevelt High School graduate has decided to self-deport to Guatemala, his lawyer said.
Alvaro Castro Velasquez, a 19-year-old from Guatemala who has been living in Roosevelt for nearly four years, was placed in ICE detention at a traffic stop in June, days after finishing his high school coursework. He was supposed to attend his graduation ceremony on June 27.
No reason was ever provided for his detention, his attorney, Pallvi Babbar, said.
Babbar said Velasquez was briefly held in Nassau before being transferred to a Texas detention facility. She said he chose to self-deport earlier this week because “he was frustrated and stuck” in the detention center. If he had not elected to do so and the government deported him without his consent, Velasquez would not be allowed back into the United States for 10 years.
Velasquez came to the U.S. in 2022 to live with his brother in Roosevelt, as he has no living relatives in Guatemala. His mother is dead and his father is not involved in his life.
Though he initially entered the country illegally, he was granted Special Immigrant Juvenile Status and deferred action, shielding him from deportation and providing him with a path towards legal residency, Babbar said.
Babbar said Velasquez was working towards obtaining a green card, but the Texas judge on his case wouldn’t agree to terminate his deportation proceedings because he did not yet have a visa number.
“This is a travesty because he arrived as a minor and has his entire community standing behind him,” Babbar said. “I understand the administration’s goal to deport gang members and criminals, but this is a child who came here for protection, and we are sending him back to a place where he has no support or resources.”
Roosevelt Superintendent Shawn Wightman, who called Velasquez a valued and respected member of the school community, said his former student’s detention and deportation were “heartbreaking.”
“This is really not about politics,” Wightman said. “It’s about people, and it’s about a student who earned his place among his classmates and peers, and about a community like Roosevelt that believes in education and it as a right and a pathway to a better future.”
“Going back to Guatemala after he’s been here for a number of years is going to be something that’s going to be very, very difficult,” Wightman said. He said Velasquez’s detention has caused “real pain and anxiety for the entire school community.”
Velasquez must leave the country by Oct. 14, but Babbar said she is still working out the details on the exact date he will leave with ICE. She was trying to arrange for the teen to return to New York to say goodbye to his family, friends and classmates, but it does not seem likely this will occur.
But that didn’t stop Wightman from seeing his former student before he returned to Guatemala. The superintendent traveled to Texas in July to see Velasquez and bring him his diploma, yearbook, cap and gown.
“Our responsibility is to educate and nurture, not to adjudicate immigration law,” Wightman said. “His story reminds us that behind every policy debate are real human lives, especially young people with dreams and potential. I want all our students to know that they are seen, valued and supported, and that their hard work matters.”
“I carried Alvaro’s diploma, cap, gown and yearbook to Texas because I wanted to demonstrate that his work and achievements still matter,” the superintendent said.
While ICE officials let the superintendent into the facility to speak with Velasquez, they did not permit him to give him his diploma.
Wightman said his student’s diploma remains in his office. He plans to visit Velasquez in Guatemala to give him his graduation regalia, hold a small ceremony and explore options to support him from there.
“A high school diploma is more than just a piece of paper. It’s a symbol of perseverance and a milestone that nobody can take away from you once you achieve that,” Wightman said.
Wightman said Velasquez was hardworking and had plans for his future. He said Velasquez had been talking about taking courses at Nassau Community College after graduation, wanted to start his own business, had been working a part-time job as a valet in Franklin Square and was involved in the school’s music programs.
“What he really wants is to work, to get a good-paying job, and to go to college,” Wightman said. “He just wants to be a productive person, to contribute to society and to live a prosperous life like anybody else, you know.”
The superintendent said Velasquez had “a lot of support” in Roosevelt and that he would do everything he legally could to help him return to the United States at a later date if he wanted to.
“I don’t know what’s in store for him, but I do know that he has a lot of support here in Roosevelt,” Wightman said. “We’re looking at how we can leverage that support for him down there, or how we might be able to assist in possibly getting him back…up here in New York.”
ICE did not respond to a request for comment.
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