New York Episcopal priest’s daughter released from ICE custody

Yeonsoo “Soo” Go reunited with her mother, the Rev. Kyrie Kim, an Episcopal priest in the Diocese of New York, after being released from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody on Aug. 4. She was arrested and detained for allegedly overstaying her visa, though it’s not set to expire until December. Photo: Screenshot

[Episcopal News Service] Yeonsoo “Soo” Go was reunited with her mother, the Rev. Kyrie Kim, an Episcopal priest in the Diocese of New York, after being released from U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement custody on Aug. 4.

Mary Rothwell Davis, an immigration attorney for the Diocese of New York, told The Washington Post that it was unclear why Go had been arrested and detained for allegedly overstaying her visa when it’s not set to expire until December. Go, a student at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, was in the process of applying to convert her current visa to a student visa.

“[Go] really did not know why she was being detained. And because of the way in which people are detained here, we did not know either,” Davis told the Post. 

Go has been living in the United States after moving to New York from South Korea in 2021. She went to a routine visa hearing on July 31 at Federal Plaza in Manhattan. After the hearing, ICE agents arrested her outside the building and placed her in federal detention nearby before relocating her to a Richwood Correctional Center in Louisiana.

Over the five days Go was detained, immigration advocates and faith leaders nationwide and in South Korea called for Go’s release by contacting their representatives, sharing news reports and sharing updates on social media. Rachel Maddow, host of The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC, mentioned Go’s detainment during the Aug. 4 episode of her show.

The Diocese of New York also had been rallying for Go’s release in recent days, including during an Aug. 2 vigil outside Federal Plaza.

“I’m just so grateful for the support I’ve had,” Go told reporters after reuniting with Kim outside Federal Plaza.

“I’m just happy that she’s with me,” Kim said in the video. “It’s not just Soo who’s in this situation. …There’s more who need the support.”

Another Episcopalian in the Diocese of New York, Elizabeth “Ketty” De Los Santos, was arrested and detained by ICE on the same day and at the same location as Go. She remains in custody at Richwood Correctional Center.

-Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service. She can be reached at skorkzan@episcopalchurch.org.