What Is 'Deportation-Tok'? People Share Life After Leaving US
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As President Donald Trump continues to implement his immigration crackdown, a new social media trend has emerged: Deportation-Tok, where people share videos of their lives after leaving the U.S.
Why It Matters
The Trump administration, in keeping with its pledge to carry out the largest mass deportation program in the history of the United States, has authorized ICE raids around the country. This immigration crackdown, which was a central part of Trump's successful bid for reelection, has been met with protests and pushback.
Some arrests have been criticized as being heavy-handed, and in addition to people living in the country without legal status, immigrants with valid documentation—including green cards and visas—have been detained.
Demonstrators holding signs and flags in Los Angeles on June 14.
Demonstrators holding signs and flags in Los Angeles on June 14.
LAUREN PUENTE/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images
What To Know
Since Trump returned to office in January, headlines about deportations across the U.S. have dominated news cycles. However, the coverage doesn't often extend to what happens afterward.
Now, through "Deportation-Tok," people who have been deported are showing what their lives look like outside the U.S. As of writing, the "life after deportation" hashtag on TikTok has more than 4,000 posts.
In the text overlay of one video, user @blancamarquez5 wrote, "When trump deports you after living in the states for 20 years … now you just a 25-year-old homeless mom trying to figure it out laughing to keep myself from crying."
Another video, posted by user @olgaschronicles23, showed a series of pre- and post-deportation situations. The text overlay "life after deportation" appeared throughout the clip, which began with footage of a house and yard under the caption "I wish I had a bigger house." The video then cut to a clip of a more rundown home with a text overlay that said, "What I came back to."
The next scene showed a laptop under text that said, "I want more money I wish I had another job." The video then cut to footage of a farm under text saying, "Working full labor for less than 5 percent of what I was making."
However, not all "life after deportation" videos are negative in tone.
User @lbc.kilo_compa562 posted a video of an individual who said he had been deported to Mexico but returned to the U.S. the following week. Newsweek has not independently verified the events in the video.
In the clip, the man said: "Mr. Trump. Mr. Trump. Me wanna say thank you to you for deportation me to Mexico and give me one week's vacation. My boss never give me. … One week I be back in U.S."
Another video, posted by user @health.tipsss_ included the text overlay "The HARSH reality of getting deported back to Mexico …" before cutting to images of things the creator identified as positives of living in Mexico, including housing, food and grocery stores.
Newsweek has contacted @blancamarquez5, @olgaschronicles23, @lbc.kilo_compa562 and @health.tipsss_ for comment via social media outside regular working hours.
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump said in April: "We're going to work with them right from the beginning on, trying to get them back in legally. So it gives you real incentive. Otherwise they never come back. They'll never be allowed once a certain period of time goes by, which is probably going to be 60 days."
One social media user commented on @blancamarquez5's video: "People saying you had 20 yrs to get your citizenship are soooo out of touch with reality!!! Hang in there and I'm sorry this country and government failed you."
One social media user commented on @olgaschronicles23's video: "You need to stop feeling sorry for yourself. If you had all that in the US & didn't appreciate it by getting legalized that was on you. Go to the big cities there is work out there."
What Happens Next
The Trump administration is expected to continue its hard-line immigration approach.
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