A rally and prayer
vigil is being organized to take place in Scarsdale on Thursday following the detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of a 20-year old student who was graduated from Scarsdale High School and has been attending Purdue University. Her mother is Rev. Kyrie Kim, an Episcopal priest. They are natives of South Korea.
“Soo,” as she is known, was at an immigration court hearing in Manhattan on Thursday through which she was attempting to have her visa extended for another two-year period. After the judge hearing her case had set a continuation date in October and Soo was leaving the courtroom, ICE agents took her into custody. It is believed she has been taken to an ICE detention facility in Louisiana.
As of Monday morning, ICE had not answered specific questions posed by the Business Journal about her detention, but did provide a statement from Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.
“Yeonsoo Go, an illegal alien from South Korea, overstayed her visa that expired more than two years ago. President Trump and Secretary Noem are committed to restoring integrity to the visa program and ensuring it is not abused to allow aliens a permanent one-way ticket to remain in the U.S. ICE arrested her on July 31 and placed her in expedited removal proceedings,” the statement said.
“The fact of the matter is those who are in our country illegally have a choice—they can leave the country voluntarily or be arrested and deported. The United States taxpayer is generously offering free flights and a $1,000 to illegal aliens who self-deport using the CBP Home app. If they leave now, they preserve the potential opportunity to come back the legal, right way. The choice is theirs,” the statement from McLaughlin concluded.
Yeonsoo Go has been in the U.S. on a visa that is valid through this coming December, according to New York State Assembly Member Amy Paulin. Paulin said that she has spoken to various members of Congress, both Republicans and Democrats, along with other officials, in an effort to obtain the student’s release from ICE custody. Paulin has been involved in planning Thursday’s event in Scarsdale.
Paulin said, “I am heartbroken over the detention of Yeonsoo ‘Soo’ Go — a beloved 2024 Scarsdale High School graduate and an accomplished Purdue University student — who was taken by ICE after her court appearance in New York City. This is not what justice looks like: a young woman with dreams of becoming a pharmacist, torn from her family and her future. I am doing everything I can to help, and I stand with Soo, her family, and all those calling for compassion and fairness in our immigration system.”
The rally and prayer vigil were scheduled for 5 p.m. on Thursday at Chase Plaza in Scarsdale. Over the weekend, a protest was staged at Federal Plaza in Manhattan.
“The arrest by ICE of Scarsdale High School graduate Yeonsoo Go is another example of how President Trump is using masked federal law enforcement officials and agencies under his control to erode democracy and violate our constitution,” said Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner. “Nationally, elected officials and civic leaders have been arrested or confronted by law enforcement officials while protesting President Trump’s immigration policies and for exercising their First Amendment right to free speech.”
White Plains Common Council Member Jen Puja, who is a candidate for the Westchester County Legislature, said, “I am saddened to learn about the detention of Yeonsoo ‘Soo’ Go. Praying for justice for Soo and strength for her and her family.”
