1. United States
2. Conn.
3. Letter

I am writing with deep urgency and moral outrage regarding the unlawful detention and deportation of Mr. Andry Hernández Romero—a 31-year-old gay Venezuelan asylum seeker—by the current administration under the gross misuse of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. Mr. Hernández, a makeup artist who came to the United States seeking protection, was instead handed over to Salvadoran authorities and placed in a high-security facility where LGBTQ+ individuals face grave threats to their lives. This is not merely a bureaucratic misstep—it is an unconstitutional abduction of a human being. The administration is operating in defiance of the rule of law, human rights, and basic decency. Mr. Hernández had no criminal record. He had a credible asylum claim. His only “offenses” appear to be tattoos honoring his parents and social media posts that were twisted into supposed evidence of gang affiliation—an outrageous and discriminatory act of profiling that reflects deep systemic rot. These actions are not isolated. They are part of a broader strategy: leveraging archaic, obscure laws and weaponizing bureaucratic chaos to create a system that disappears people without due process—sometimes based solely on DHS deciding they don't like the look of certain tattoos. The administration is counting on resistance to be slow and disorganized while it pushes forward a horrifying agenda. We are watching modern-day concentration camps take shape with our cooperation, with the administration openly speaking of plans to even deport U.S. citizens to similar foreign prison camps next. We have seen this playbook before—in 1939 Germany. We swore “never again.” And yet, here we are. I implore you to act with all the urgency and influence you can muster: • Demand an immediate review of Mr. Hernández’s case and do whatever is necessary to secure his safe release. • Investigate and challenge the administration’s unconstitutional use of the Alien Enemies Act to detain and deport asylum seekers. • Use your platform to expose the systematic targeting of migrants—including those with legitimate asylum claims or in the midst of lawful immigration proceedings—under the guise of ‘security’ and ‘order.’ • Prevent the expansion of detention programs that threaten to engulf U.S. citizens and residents alike. Every moment we delay is another moment in which someone like Mr. Hernández suffers in inhumane conditions, stripped of rights and dignity, perhaps never to return. History is watching, and your role in this moment will be remembered.