A little girl in Missouri broke down in tears while pleading for the return of her father, who her family says was taken into immigration custody while working.
In a video shared by the girl’s mother, the child struggles through tears while delivering what her mother described as a message to the ICE agents she says detained her husband. “Can you give my dad back?” the girl asks.
“Please? Give my dad back. I need him,” the girl says while crying. The video ends with her still in tears and coughing as she struggles to finish her message.
The girl’s mother disputed any suggestion that her husband was unlawfully in the country, writing, “First – my husbands legal, he did everything the correct way.”
The family has also created a GoFundMe seeking money for Luis’ immigration case. His sister says Luis has lived in the United States since he was two years old and is now a husband and father of six.
“Luis has lived in the United States since he was just two years old. He is a hardworking husband and father of six. He has a valid work permit and a pending I-130, so our family is heartbroken and confused about why he was taken into immigration custody while working on the road,” she wrote.
Those details do not independently establish Luis’ current immigration status or explain the legal basis for his detention. An official account from ICE describing why he was taken into custody could not be located.
The fundraiser has since received more than $5,000 toward its $6,000 goal. The family says the money will help pay for legal representation and efforts to secure Luis’ release, including representation at his bond hearing.
Viewers React to Missouri Girl’s Plea for Her Dad
The girl’s emotional message drew an outpouring of sympathy from viewers.
“I am so sorry sweetheart,” one person wrote, while another said, “I hate our reality right now. I’m so sorry sweet girl.”
Others focused on the child’s reaction to her father’s absence. “How do people look at this and still not feel ANYTHING??” one viewer asked.
For the family, the immediate focus is Luis’ immigration case and an upcoming bond hearing. His sister says the fundraiser is intended to help pay for an attorney to represent him and pursue his release.
For his young daughter, however, the complicated immigration proceedings were reduced to one simple request in the video: “Give my dad back. I need him.”
