An immigrant poet and activist faced deportation by ICE. Then 2 NFL players bailed him out
LOS ANGELES - A few months ago, Jose Bello's future looked grim: detention, imprisonment, deportation and a long-term separation from his infant son.
His only offense, he claimed, was reading a poem.
At a meeting in May of the Kern County board of supervisors in Bakersfield, the 22-year-old Mexico native, farmworker and outspoken college activist had pushed up to the podium, leaned into the mic and recited the verses that would set off an uproar.
"Dear America," Bello began, "our administration has failed/ took away our rights and our freedom / and still expect to be hailed?"
In a steady tone at odds with his fiery message, he went on. "Dear America / You and your administration cause fear, / fear through Separation, / Instead of building trust with our people, do y'all prefer this racial tension?"
Thirty-six hours later, on the morning of May 15, officers of Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Bello outside his home in Bakersfield. Later that day, his mother, Araceli Reyes, was surprised to see her son's car still parked outside the family home; normally he
