The 37-year-old told Breakfast she's trying to resume normal life but it's been hard, saying she doesn't feel safe under the current administration. (Source: Breakfast)
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Everlee Wihongi, a Kiwi detained by US immigration authorities for over two months, has spoken publicly about her ordeal.
The 37-year-old told Breakfast she's trying to resume normal life but it's been hard, saying she doesn't feel safe under the current administration.
"It never used to be like this, Green Cards use to be safe," she said.
It has been "rough" for immigrants and foreigners under the Trump administration, she said.
A Green Card holder, she was released in June after a marijuana conviction from 2016 was overturned. She had been held after returning from a holiday in New Zealand.
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She had previously re-entered the US without any problems.
Everlee Wihongi has lived in the States with her family since she was a child but has now been taken into custody. (Source: 1News)
Wihongi described how life in the detention centre was slow, with ICE officers waking them up in the morning and making them sit at tables for hours without much communication.
"It was such a different lens to see everything through," she told Breakfast.
"The whole time I met regular people who had done nothing," she said.
Wihongi was undecided on whether she would return home to New Zealand or stay in the United States, as much of her family lived there.
She said she would continue to work towards getting her life back to normal - she was currently living with her parents in Wisconsin as she adjusted back to normal life.
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