In Minnesota, Liam was simply a kindergartner with a rabbit-eared hat and a favorite backpack, racing down school hallways while his principal smiled and teachers called his name. In Texas, he is a case file in a locked facility, growing quieter each day, asking why he can’t go home and why the things that made him feel like himself vanished in the hands of strangers. Around him, adults argue over legality, policy, and blame, while his small world has shrunk to concrete walls and his father’s exhausted embrace.
Outside, his classmates keep his seat open. His principal pleads for people to “believe what you see.” Members of Congress demand his release, insisting his family followed every rule they were given. Protesters lift his photo into the cold air, a child’s face becoming a symbol of a country’s choices. Somewhere inside Dilley, a little boy still wonders where his hat went.
