On December 26th, 2017, my worst fear became a reality: my twin brother Juan Esteban Barreto was detained. We came to this world together. He is my companion. I still remember when I found out that him and I were undocumented; I cried myself to sleep worrying about our family being torn apart.

My brother Juan Esteban has been a New Yorker for more than 18 years now. He is a young immigrant, who was sent to a detention camp when the New York Police Department improperly collaborated with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). NYPD handed him to deportation agents.

We migrated to Queens, New York, at the age of 2 and this has been our home ever since. Before he was detained, Juan Esteban attended school in New York City. From there, he hoped to go to college and study engineering. He wanted to find a way to serve and help others. Juan Esteban would not be in a jail right now, if Congress took action and passed a Dream Act.

I miss Juan Esteban dearly and I know my parents do too. We have always been together, the four of us as one. Now I worry about the conditions that Juan Esteban is facing in this detention center. He’s shared with me how hard it is to endure the extremely low temperatures of the jail cells. I don’t know how long he’ll be able to continue staying strong and fighting to come back home.

We need Juan Esteban back home now! I can't even imagine what would happen if my brother Juan Esteban were deported. I don’t want to imagine a life without him. I simply can’t.

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