Community members came together at an Astoria, Queens elementary school playground on Sunday, after a 6-year-old student who attends the school and his Chinese father were detained and separated.

The gathering happened on the same day Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani released a public service announcement explaining citizens' rights when confronted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

6-year-old boy, father detained and separated

Concerns are mounting as to the whereabouts of first grader Yuanxin Zheng, who was separated from his father nearly two weeks ago when they reported to a scheduled immigration hearing at 26 Federal Plaza.

Community leaders, along with fellow students and families from P.S. 166, where Zheng was enrolled, gathered outside the school's playground on Sunday and lashed out at tactics used by federal immigration agents that they say are leaving communities traumatized.

"It's shocking that a 6-year-old child could be kidnapped by government police," one demonstrator said.  

"I have seen some brutal family separations," City Comptroller Brad Lander said. "But I have to tell you, I still have not heard anything as rotten as family separating and jailing a 6-year-old boy. We're not gonna stand for it. Shame."

While the boy's father, Fei Zheng, remains in an adult detention center in Orange County, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson confirmed to CBS News that the 6-year-old is in the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement at an undisclosed location.

DHS said the family was given an order of removal and that the father "was acting so disruptive and aggressive that he endangered the child's wellbeing," the spokesperson said.

Mamdani's message to New Yorkers

Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani rolled out a new PSA on Sunday, reminding New Yorkers to know their rights when encountering Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

"ICE cannot enter into private spaces like your home, school or private area of your workplace without a judicial warrant," Mamdani said. "If you're being detained, you have the right to ask, 'Am I free to go?' repeatedly until they answer you."

The community in Astoria also collected letters Sunday in support of the 6-year-old, which were handed to his first grade teacher. The hope, they say, is to hand them over to him when he returns to class.