Volunteer reunites migrant mother with her autistic son after being separated by US immigration

NEW YORK -- Diana Mansilla Jaramillo, from Ecuador, is one of the over 150,000 migrants to have arrived in New York City since the beginning of 2022. She journeyed with her husband and two children, ages 8 and 4, through eight countries and was separated from her son and husband upon arriving at the US-Mexico border. After arriving in New York by bus, Mansilla Jaramillo found herself connecting with a volunteer named Power Malu. She did not know this stranger would become the guardian angel to help her reunite with her son.

Power Malu is a nonprofit organizer who offers support and resources to the migrant communities bussed to New York. His organization Artists Athletes Activists helps them find legal services, shelters, and other assistance. He is an athlete, artist, and activist, and also serves as a community director at a boxing gym. Malu dedicates much of his free time to helping migrants. "I know what it feels like to be alone," said Malu. Malus's mother immigrated from Puerto Rico to the United States, and he recalls making phone calls and appointments as a translator for his mother and neighbors. He would see them being shunned and turned away when asking for help. Since then, he has vowed to help those in need if he were ever in the position to do so.

"Sometimes you feel alone doing this work. There's so much pushback and bureaucracy, and you constantly have to fight and advocate for people," said Malu.

Before Mayor Adams restricted the arrival of buses at Port Authority, hundreds of migrants were being transported to New York from Texas every day. Malu and his team of volunteers would wait for these migrants, answer their questions upon arrival, and arrange transportation to shelters, including paying for Uber and Lyft out of their own pocket. "We tell them what to expect; from the next steps, we give them our phone number, and we make sure they keep in touch with us," said Malu. Once settled, migrants can come to the resource center where Malu and other volunteers review their legal documents and provide guidance on the next steps. At this center, they receive help applying for benefits, learning their rights, and enrolling their children in school.

In her country, Mansilla Jaramillo worked as an administrator, and her husband was a bank security officer. She said they were afraid of being targeted by local gangs because of their professions and it grew worse as they began being extorted. They decided to migrate to the United States when their children were threatened. Mansilla Jaramillo began traveling north by foot and bus in February 2023. After being separated from her husband and son, immigration services placed her autistic son in a foster home in Maryland. Her husband had been deported back to Ecuador. Although she was fearful her daughter would be taken away, Mansilla Jaramillo turned herself in to immigration services at a San Antonio shelter. From there, Diana and her daughter managed to find transportation to New York. She connected with Malu when she was looking for help.

When she arrived in New York, Malu immediately took action to locate her son. "Mr. Power helped me handle the process [of getting my son back], he helped my son get healthcare too," said Mansilla Jaramillo. After locating him, Malu reunited the mother with her son during a heartfelt moment at the LaGuardia airport. Now living in a migrant Shelter in New York City, Mansilla Jaramillo is looking forward to building a new life with her two children. "I have a lot of goals. I would like to work and provide my kids with a good future," said Mansilla Jaramillo.