IvanAlanna

An important decision will be made this week impacting the life of Ivan Nikolov and those who love him.

By the end of the week, Ivan, a 22-year-old who immigrated to the United States from Russia in the year 2000, will either be deported or released from Calhoun County Jail, where he has been held for the last three months. Ivan’s family came to the country when he was 11, and he quickly settled in to life in the United States. Four years later, while asking his mom about possibly getting a driver’s license, he came to know that he had no legal status in this country.

According to immigration authorities, who raided Ivan’s home in May of this year, Ivan is subject to deportation and has no legal recourse because he missed a court date where he was ordered deported… when he was a 12-year-old boy.

In the ten years that passed between the immigration court date and ICE’s action, Ivan became a young man. He was unable to attend college because of his lack of legal status, but focused on his art. He mastered the guitar, and taught himself to play piano and accordion. He also got engaged to a girl he met in his adopted hometown of Warren, MIchigan.

"I met him through a friend, and we hit it off right away. He is a hilarious guy, and always the life of the party," said Ivan’s fiancee, Alanna Woolley, a 22-year-old English and Women’s Studies major at Wayne State University. She has spoken to Ivan while he sits in jail. She says Ivan is nervous, but hopeful. Ivan lived with fear in the back of his head, but never expected to see himself in this situation.

"You read about these things: jail, detention centers…but you never think it will happen to you. You don’t think that you will be the one stuck here separated from your family and eating crap food," he told his fiancee.

Enforcement and deportations have increased during the Obama administration, and while some have been spared through deferments, no official policy has been established

In the absence of the immigration reform, Ivan has grown up surrounded by a flawed system where ICE agents can blame him of things he did not understand, county jails can make money from renting a bed to the federal government, and millions of other immigrants of every race and nationality live in constant fear. Meanwhile in Congress, the enforcement-first charade continues with today’s approval of another $600 million dollars for pseudo-solutions along the border.

To sign a petition to stop the deportation of Ivan and demand that Congress pass the DREAM Act as a stand alone bill, please visit DreamActivist.