A Purdue University student and daughter of a prominent New York priest who was detained during a visa hearing last week has been released.
Yeonsoo Go, 20, reunited with her family Monday night in downtown Manhattan. It comes after Go, who was handcuffed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents upon leaving her visa hearing, spent several days in a facility in Louisiana, according to the ICE database.
Go came to the U.S. in 2021 on a religious dependent visa for children or spouses of religious workers temporarily in the country, Marissa Joseph, Go’s attorney, told NBC News. Go, whose visa had been extended until December, was attempting to renew the visa because her mother had changed employers. It isn’t clear why the student was targeted for detention, Joseph said.
“I’m just so grateful for the support that I’ve had,” Go told the crowd of supporters after she hugged her family.
ICE did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request to comment on the reasons behind Go’s detention. And the Department of Homeland Security did not provide the family a reason for Go’s release, Joseph said. DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin previously described Go in a statement as an “illegal alien” who had overstayed her visa that expired more than two years ago.
Go, who lives in Scarsdale, New York, with her mother, Kyrie Kim, came to the U.S. for Kim’s work. Kim, who became the first woman ordained in the Seoul Diocese of the Anglican Church of Korea, had been invited to develop the Episcopal church’s connection to Asian communities, said Mary Rothwell Davis, an attorney for the Episcopal Diocese of New York, where Go’s mother is a reverend.
“It was an initiative to begin a new ministry, reaching out to Asian clergy, Asian families, and … to help strengthen and grow that aspect of our Episcopal and Anglican community,” Davis said, just hours before Go’s release. “Rev. Kim is the person who was chosen to do that.”
Go, a rising sophomore at Purdue, had a smooth, uneventful visa hearing, Davis said, and was given a date to return to court.
“Everything seemed to go perfectly well,” Davis said. “So she had no idea this was coming. None.”
Davis said she has seen the visa herself and was unsure why McLaughlin had claimed Go overstayed her visa.
“We have no idea why they are alleging this, because we have a piece of paper that says she has a visa till December 2025,” Davis said. “This is what lack of due process does. We have evidence on our side. They’re making allegations. We are not being given the opportunity to sort it out.”
Go’s detention drew massive backlash across faith and local New York communities. Over the weekend, friends, loved ones and more gathered in downtown Manhattan to rally around the student. Davis said that as Go was being transferred to Louisiana from the facility in New York, she caught a glimpse of the supporters.
“She was leaving the building by bus, and she saw the Episcopal Diocese rally that was taking place in front of the courthouse,” Davis, who’s been in constant communication with the family, said. “It was very bittersweet.”
New York Assemblymember Amy Paulin, who spoke to Go on the night of her release, said in a statement that she is “overjoyed” that so many individuals spoke out for Go.
“The pain, fear, and uncertainty she and her family endured over the past five days should never have happened,” Paulin said in the statement. “But tonight we celebrate her freedom and the strength of a community that refused to stay silent.”
Kim told reporters that though she’s relieved that her daughter is back home, it’s also critical to remember that many others continue to contend with circumstances similar to Go’s detention.
“There’s more who need the support,” Kim said.
