'Uphill battle': ex-immigration detainee in New Jersey sworn in as US citizen

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Former immigration detainee Cloyd Edralin of Highland Park, New Jersey was sworn in as an American citizen last week.

"I'm still pinching myself. Is this for real? Did it really happen?," Edralin said.

When this Filipino was a green card holder, he was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in 2018 over a decade-old conviction for an air rifle with plastic pellets possession, in which he served probation.

The father of four was released after months in detention but had lived in fear of being deported since then.

Filipino American lawyer and Dean of Rutgers Law School, Rose Cuison-Villazor, revealed that it was through reporting at ABS-CBN News that she connected with Edralin.

"Cloyd's story spoke to me as a Filipino American, and he looks like he could be my brother and his story is similar to the stories like many other Filipino Americans that I know and I wanted to help him," Cuison-Villazor shared.

Cuison-Villazor, who also runs an immigration policy center, admitted that Edralin’s case was an uphill battle.

"There is a community of people who are here to help, and Patrick and I would not have been able to help Cloyd if we didn’t have other lawyers and advocates that we could turn to."

Patrick Johnson, a Center for Immigration Law, Policy and Justice Law fellow, also noted, "it was quite a process to review the whole file and make sure that if we move forward with Cloyd’s application that we would not cause him any problems down the line."

Four years later and after countless hours of preparation, Edralin is waving the American flag filled with renewed hope.

According to Cuison-Villazor, a case like Edralin's is the reason she started the Center for Immigration Law, Policy and Justice.

"Citizenship is one that is desired by many but there are barriers to citizenship to becoming a full member of the United States politi. And Cloyd’s story highlights for us the hope and desire to become a citizen and overcoming the barriers to acquiring citizenship," Cuison-Villazor said.

For his part, Edralin stresses the importance of not giving up.

"The only thing I can say is regardless of how bad the situation is, there is always hope. There's always people with a good heart who would help. All you need to do is research, don’t give up," he said.