Border Patrol detains undocumented immigrants' rights leader Jose Antonio Vargas

Border Patrol officials detained Jose Antonio Vargas, a well-known leader of the immigrants' rights movement — and and undocumented immigrant himself — at an airport in McAllen, Texas this morning, reports The New York Times.

Vargas, an undocumented Filipino immigrant who has lived in the United States since he was 13, is a Pulitzer-winning journalist who arrived in McAllen last week to participate in an immigrants' rights news conference organized by United We Dream. The former reporter for The Washington Post announced his undocumented status in an article for The New York Times Magazine in 2011.

Vargas has reportedly traveled to a number of events around the country in recent months to promote a documentary film he produced about life as an undocumented immigrant. Because he does have a valid Filipino passport, officials at other checkpoints had apparently not checked Vargas' immigration status.

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"I didn't even think twice about it," Vargas said of accepting the invitation to speak at this week's event. "No, this can't be for real."