Colombian Congresswoman Angela Vergara is calling on her country’s government to step in and help Colombians being held in U.S. immigration detention, after her own son was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Vergara, who belongs to the pro-Donald Trump Conservative Party, made the request publicly after announcing that her 22-year-old son, Rafael Alonso Vergara, has been detained by U.S. immigration authorities for more than two weeks. She first revealed the situation last Friday, saying her son had already been in ICE custody for 18 days after being detained during a traffic stop in Louisiana.
The case has quickly turned into a political flashpoint in Colombia, especially because of Vergara’s close association with Trump-style politics.
Vergara posted a message on X urging Colombian President Gustavo Petro to respond. “Today we ask the government for a clear and URGENT response to the request made by 30 congresspeople from all parties to address the serious humanitarian crisis faced by hundreds of Colombians deprived of their liberty in the United States,” she wrote.
Along with the post, she shared an image of a letter addressed to Petro, Foreign Minister Rosa Yolanda Villavicencio, and the head of the Colombian Air Force. In the letter, she called for the Air Force to coordinate a “humanitarian flight” to repatriate Colombians being held by ICE.
Vergara also framed her son’s detention as part of a larger humanitarian issue, suggesting many families are suffering quietly without support. “For weeks now, I have been experiencing what thousands of Colombians have suffered over the past year,” she wrote on X. “I raise my voice in the name of humanity for the families who are suffering without help; for Colombians who are treated like criminals today without being so.”
She also insisted that her son entered the U.S. legally in 2022 and that he was “not undocumented.” Still, her public denunciation immediately drew criticism and mockery from parts of the Colombian public, with many pointing to the political irony. Vergara’s Conservative Party openly celebrated Trump’s election in 2024, after a campaign in which he pledged mass deportations.
Vergara has also been seen as closely aligned with the MAGA wing of U.S. politics. She is part of the anti-abortion bloc in Colombia’s congress and publicly mourned the death of right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk last September.
At the same time, Vergara has faced false claims, including accusations that she led a “Latinas for Trump” movement and supported U.S. intervention in Colombia. Petro himself fueled confusion by sharing a video of a woman wearing a ‘Make America Great Again’ hat, which he falsely identified as Vergara.
As the backlash grew, Vergara defended herself against accusations that she only cared now because her family was affected. She responded firmly, writing: “Denouncing injustice is not hypocrisy; it is consistency and dignity. Insults are no substitute for facts.”