Thanks to you all, we’ll continue to #FreeThemAll

Family Separation. Solitary Confinement. Unjust Legal Proceedings. 

These are the many words to describe the experiences of our liberated brothers Mr. F, Shakoure, Ousman and Karim. 

Here are their stories:

Ousman has lived in the U.S since he was a child, has a wife and a 2 year old daughter whom he has held in his arms twice. Ousman has received a rare gubernatorial pardon from Governor Cuomo with countless letters of support from Congress and public officials. Despite the community backing him, ICE still refuses to release Ousman. 

He has been in ICE custody for three years.  

The conditions in which Ousman was put under include 16-18 hours of solitary confinement a day, denied religious freedom to perform the 5 Islamic prayers and lack of sanitary products such as soap and sanitizer which put him at risk of contracting COVID-19. 

Karim Golding, an undocumented Black Muslim Jamaican immigrant, spent his fourth Ramadan in one of the worst immigrant detention centers in the country. In 2006, he was targeted and arrested. He appealed his sentence but was resentenced to another ten years in prison. 

His time in prison included indefinite solitary confinement, testing positive twice for COVID-19, while also fighting worsened symptoms of liver disease, depression and anxiety. 

Mr. F, who sought refuge in the United States, was met with detainment by the DHS. With the knowledge that Mr. F was fleeing from religious persecution by Russia and Tajikistan, the DHS resorted to continue perpetrating institutionalized Islamophobia and falsely labeling him a threat to the community and participating in extremism. 

During his detainment, he suffered discrimination from ICE contractors, had his religious beliefs violated by serving him non-Halal foods. ANd similar to Karim, he contracted COVID-19 and suffered from serious on-going health problems. 

Shakoure, a Black Muslim youth mentor and business owner from Queens has been impsioned and placed detention for actions he took as a teenager - almost 30 years ago. While in Bergen County Jail, Shakoure experienced failing air conditioning during the hot summers, multiple COVID-19 outbreaks and the denial of basic necessities such as hand sanitizer and soaps. 

However there was light at the end of the tunnel and with hard work and community pressure, we were able to help liberate and bring home Shakoure, Ousman, Karim and Mr. F!

For the past year, we have been working diligently to share Shakoure, Ousman, Karim and Mr. F’s story to the world to get them back home. And with your hard work, they are finally home in the safety of their family, friends and beloved community. 

When we work together, we are able to unite families and #FreeThemAll.