Attendees wait to speak at a City Council meeting March 24, 2026, in Arlington. They called for a resolution demanding the release of a community member detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (Christine Vo | Fort Worth Report) Enjoy reading the news again. Join over 110,000 neighbors that count on our newsletters for stories happening in your backyard. Sign up for free. Supporters and friends of an Arlington resident in ICE detention requested Arlington City Council consider a resolution calling for his release. Ya’akub Ira Vijandre, a Filipino immigrant who came to the United States with his parents when he was 14, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement at his Arlington home in October. Vijandre is in the U.S under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program. The federal government is seeking to terminate Vijandre’s DACA protection because of his social media activity, his attorneys said. They wrote in a press release that he “has been at the forefront of exposing the due process violations, miscarriages of justice, and inhumane prison conditions in cases prosecuted in the “War on Terror,” and his speech is protected by the First Amendment. “We have the right to disagree with the validity of a criminal conviction,” Marium Uddin, one of his attorneys, told the Report. “You can believe that the system got it wrong.” At Arlington City Council’s March 24 meeting, Vijandre’s supporters spoke of his photographic work of protests in support of Palestine, as well as his character as a community activist. Many also shared concern for the ICE presence in Arlington. Uddin told council members that although immigration enforcement is not under city jurisdiction, they can show vocal support for a resident’s constitutional rights. “What happens to (Vijandre) will define what Arlington stands for,” she said. Wasif Siddiqui, a former co-worker of Vijandre, told City Council about the conditions Vijandre is currently living in at the Folkston Detention Center in Georgia. “He’s been there for like 168 days. It’s terrible,” Siddiqui said. “He’s in a room with like 75 people or something. The AC went out, and they were just sitting in the heat, doors were closed.” Justin Lopez Aterrado, a student at the University of Texas at Arlington, said he believes the city of Arlington should live up to its name, “The American Dream City,” by showing support for the immigrant community. “When I see my international student friends on the UTA campus, when I spend time with my nanang (mother) at Asia Times Square, I see a city built by immigrants who seek only the true benevolent archetype of the American dream,” Lopez Aterrado said. “What happens to (Vijandre) sets the precedent for all of us who could be detained by ICE here in Arlington.” Mayor Jim Ross approached the group at the end of the meeting. Ross told the Report that he intends to educate himself more on Vijandre’s situation. Although Ross said he isn’t sure if he or City Council members can provide immediate action, he owes it to an Arlington resident to hear their concerns. “I hear the concerns of the community. Hell, it concerns me. It’s scary as hell that someone could just snatch you up, and you’re gone for six months,” Ross said. “I want to know what’s going on. We represent all of our residents, and he is one of our residents.” Higher Education Reporter McKinnon Rice contributed to this story. Bianca Rodriguez-Mora is a reporting fellow for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at bianca@fortworthreport.org. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here. Fort Worth Report is certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative for adhering to standards for ethical journalism. Republishing is free for noncommercial entities. Commercial entities are prohibited without a licensing agreement. Contact us for details.