Latest news with #selfdeport
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Idaho man self-deports, U.S. citizen family to uproot and follow
Idaho () — Cenobio Feliciano-Galeana came to the U.S. illegally when he was 18 years old. 18 years since he's found a life, a wife, and now four children. But after seeing the deportations taking place across the country, he has decided to self-deport back to his home country of Mexico. Ashlee, Cenobio's wife, says she and the family are coming with him. At the end of the year, she plans move with her four children to a country they have never known, just to keep the family together. PREVIOUSLY: Utah immigration lawyer, who is a naturalized U.S. citizen, ordered to self-deport Since they began their relationship, Ashlee says she and her family have been trying to get Cenobio through the process to gain status in the U.S., with no luck. Several lawyers and thousands of dollars later, she says not even being married to a U.S. citizen helps Cenobio's cause. She details, 'If I had a penny for every time somebody has said that, I'd have the money to pay for those lawyers.' She says the lawyers initially told them they had a fifty-fifty chance. After the Trump administration was sworn in, she says she was told they had no chance. Their options were to stay and risk it or have Cenobio self-deport and try again in 10 years. Ashlee explains, 'We have a six-year-old down to a nine-month-old baby. Ten years without a father? That is huge.' For her, moving with him is her only option. Staying wasn't something she was willing to do. She says, 'Wait for one day them to come into my home and take my husband away like a criminal and have my kids have to see that. And I decided that was not a choice I was willing to live with.' Ashlee says Cenobio never committed a crime. His name doesn't bring anything up in the Utah court system. His only crime was being caught at the border twice and crossing itself a crime; one that Ashlee acknowledges but doesn't believe it means he should never get a chance. The Latest: Protests over immigration raids spread across the US She says, 'He was born on the wrong side of a line. He came here because he was starving. You know, what would you do if he were truly went days without eating, starving? Where would your desperation lead you?' So now, Ashlee and the kids pack up their things for a country they don't know, wondering if they can ever come home again as a complete family. She hopes stories like hers inspires change so that a path to having status in the U.S. is attainable for people like her husband. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Herald
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Herald
TikTok star Khaby Lame detained in US for visa violation, ‘self-deports'
Senegalese-Italian social media sensation Khaby Lame, the world's most-followed TikTok creator, was detained by US immigration authorities and forced to 'self-deport' after overstaying his visa following a high-profile appearance at the Met Gala in May. The 25-year-old influencer — whose real name is Seringe Khabane Lame and who holds Italian citizenship — was stopped by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas on June 6, officials confirmed. According to a recent post on Instagram, Lame is now in Brazil. Lame, who has amassed 162-million followers on TikTok for his trademark silent reaction videos and comedic content, had been in the US for several public engagements, including the Met Gala held in New York in early May. Sources suggest his travel documents allowed only a temporary stay, and he failed to exit the country before the visa's expiry. Rather than face formal removal proceedings, Lame was reportedly offered the opportunity to 'self-deport', a voluntary departure process often used in immigration cases involving public figures or first-time offenders. It remains unclear whether Lame will face additional restrictions on future travel to the US. Representatives for the star have not commented publicly on the matter.
New York Times
22-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Trump's New Penalty for Undocumented Immigrants: Billions of Dollars in Fines
The Trump administration has found a new way to pressure undocumented immigrants to leave the country. It is penalizing some of them with fines of nearly $1,000 a day for every day they stay in the country illegally. So far, the administration has imposed $2 billion in fines on nearly 7,000 people who have failed to leave the country after either being ordered to do so or saying they would voluntarily go, according to Tricia McLaughlin, a homeland security spokeswoman. President Trump has opened a major crackdown on immigration since he took office, using aggressive tactics to pursue arrests and deportations. But there have been roadblocks, including a lack of resources to carry out his big promises. Officials have also encouraged migrants to leave the country voluntarily by offering them free flights and $1,000 stipends. This week, dozens of migrants leaving the country voluntarily were flown to Colombia and Honduras. The fines are part of the effort to get people to 'self-deport.' It's unclear whether the government has collected on any of the fines, but officials said that they could garnish wages, issue liens against property or refer people to private collection agencies to enforce the fines levied against them. Kathleen Bush-Joseph, a policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, said the fines are 'yet another aspect of a multifaceted pressure campaign.' She continued: 'This is clearly a strategy to make conditions so inhospitable that noncitizens end up leaving.' The government imposed similar fines during Mr. Trump's first presidency. Back then, however, the crackdown appeared to be targeted at migrants who were hiding from federal immigration officers in U.S. churches. The cases of the migrants finding sanctuary in the churches gained national attention in the first few years of the Trump administration as a sign of resistance to Mr. Trump's immigration crackdown. In 2019, The Times spoke with migrants in churches who faced fines of nearly $500,000. During the Biden administration, officials moved to cancel most of the fines and the Department of Homeland Security stopped issuing them altogether. The agency said then that 'the fines were not effective and had not meaningfully advanced the interests' of D.H.S. 'There is no indication that these penalties promoted compliance with noncitizens' departure obligations,' Alejandro N. Mayorkas said in a statement in 2021, when he was homeland security secretary. 'We can enforce our immigration laws without resorting to ineffective and unnecessary punitive measures.' Scott Shuchart, a lead official with Immigration and Customs Enforcement during the Biden administration, criticized the effort as a 'cynical ploy.' 'Nobody will pay the fines, but nonpayment of the fines can bootstrap ICE into pursuing liens and other ways to ruin the lives of people who haven't necessarily committed any crimes,' he said.
The Independent
21-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
After crossing the border for better schools, some parents are pulling their kids and leaving the US
For the last two months of their life in the United States, José Alberto González and his family spent nearly all their time in their one-bedroom Denver apartment. They didn't speak to anyone except their roommates, another family from Venezuela. They consulted WhatsApp messages for warnings of immigration agents in the area before leaving for the rare landscaping job or to buy groceries. But most days at 7:20 a.m., González's wife took their children to school. The appeal of their children learning English in American schools, and the desire to make money, had compelled González and his wife to bring their 6- and 3-year-old on the monthslong journey to the United States. They arrived two years ago, planning to stay for a decade. But on Feb. 28, González and his family boarded a bus from Denver to El Paso, where they would walk across the border and start the trip back to Venezuela. Even as immigrants in the U.S. avoid going out in public, terrified of encountering immigration authorities, families across the country are mostly sending their children to school. That's not to say they feel safe. In some cases, families are telling their children's schools that they're leaving. Already, thousands of immigrants have notified federal authorities they plan to 'self-deport,' according to the Department of Homeland Security. President Donald Trump has encouraged more families to leave by stoking fears of imprisonment, ramping up government surveillance, and offering people $1,000 and transportation out of the country. And on Monday, the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to strip legal protections from hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan immigrants, potentially exposing them to deportation. Without Temporary Protective Status, even more families will weigh whether to leave the U.S., advocates say. 'The amount of fear and uncertainty that is going through parents' heads, who could blame somebody for making a choice to leave?' said Andrea Rentería, principal of a Denver elementary school serving immigrant students. Rumors of immigration raids on schools became a turning point When Trump was elected in November after promising to deport immigrants and depicting Venezuelans, in particular, as gang members, González knew it was time to go. He was willing to accept the trade-off of earning just $50 weekly in his home country, where public schools operate a few hours a day. 'I don't want to be treated like a delinquent,' González said in Spanish. 'I'm from Venezuela and have tattoos. For him, that means I'm a criminal.' It took González months to save up the more than $3,000 he needed to get his family to Venezuela on a series of buses and on foot. They sent their children to their Denver school regularly until late February, when González's phone lit up with messages claiming immigration agents were planning raids inside schools. That week, they kept their son home. 'Honestly, we were really scared for our boy,' González said. In the months following Trump's inauguration, Denver Public School attendance suffered, according to district data. Attendance districtwide fell by 3% in February compared with the same period last year, with even steeper declines of up to 4.7% at schools primarily serving immigrant newcomer students. Data obtained from 15 districts across eight additional states, including Texas, Alabama, Idaho and Massachusetts, showed a similar decline in school attendance after the inauguration for a few weeks. In most places, attendance rebounded sooner than in Denver. Nationwide, schools are still reporting drops in daily attendance during weeks when there is immigration enforcement — or even rumors of Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids — in their communities, said Hedy Chang of the nonprofit Attendance Works, which helps schools address absenteeism. In late February, González and his wife withdrew their children from school and told administrators they were returning to Venezuela. He posted a goodbye message on a Facebook group for Denver volunteers he used to find work and other help. 'Thank you for everything, friends,' he posted. Immigrant families are gathering documents they need to return home Countries with large populations living in the United States are seeing signs of more people wanting to return home. Applications for Brazilian passports from consulates in the U.S. increased 36% in March, compared to the previous year, according to data from the Brazilian Foreign Ministry. Guatemala reports a 5% increase over last year for passports from its nationals living in the United States. Last month, Melvin Josué, his wife and another couple drove four hours from New Jersey to Boston to get Honduran passports for their American-born children. It's a step that's taken on urgency in case these families decide life in the United States is untenable. Melvin Josué worries about what might happen if he or his wife is detained, but lately he's more concerned with the difficulty of finding work. Demand for his drywall crew immediately stopped amid the economic uncertainty caused by tariffs. There's also more reluctance, he said, to hire workers here illegally. (The Associated Press agreed to use only his first and middle name because he's in the country illegally and fears being separated from his family.) 'I don't know what we'll do, but we may have to go back to Honduras,' he said. 'We want to be ready.' Trump's offer to pay immigrants to leave and help them with transportation could hasten the departures. González, now back in Venezuela, says he wouldn't have accepted the money, because it would have meant registering with the U.S. government, which he no longer trusts. And that's what he's telling the dozens of migrants in the U.S. who contact him each week asking the best way home. Go on your own, he tells them. Once you have the cash, it's much easier going south than it was getting to the U.S. in the first place. ____ Associated Press writer Jocelyn Gecker contributed to this report. ___ The Associated Press' education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
The Independent
21-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
They crossed the border for better schools. Now, some families are leaving the US
For the last two months of their life in the United States, José Alberto González and his family spent nearly all their time in their one-bedroom Denver apartment. They didn't speak to anyone except their roommates, another family from Venezuela. They consulted WhatsApp messages for warnings of immigration agents in the area before leaving for the rare landscaping job or to buy groceries. But most days at 7:20 a.m., González's wife took their children to school. The appeal of their children learning English in American schools, and the desire to make money, had compelled González and his wife to bring their 6- and 3-year-old on the monthslong journey to the United States. They arrived two years ago, planning to stay for a decade. But on Feb. 28, González and his family boarded a bus from Denver to El Paso, where they would walk across the border and start the long trip back to Venezuela. Even as immigrants in the U.S. avoid going out in public, terrified of encountering immigration authorities, families across the country are mostly sending their children to school. That's not to say they feel safe. In some cases, families are telling their children's schools that they're leaving. Already, thousands of immigrants have notified federal authorities they plan to 'self-deport,' according to the Department of Homeland Security. President Donald Trump has encouraged more families to leave by stoking fears of imprisonment, ramping up government surveillance, and offering people $1,000 and transportation out of the country. And on Monday, the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to strip legal protections from hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan immigrants, potentially exposing them to deportation. Without Temporary Protective Status, even more families will weigh whether to leave the U.S., advocates say. Departures in significant numbers could spell trouble for schools, which receive funding based on how many students they enroll. 'The amount of fear and uncertainty that is going through parents' heads, who could blame somebody for making a choice to leave?' said Andrea Rentería, principal of a Denver elementary school serving immigrant students. 'I can tell them as a principal that I won't let anybody in this school. Nobody is taking your kid. But I can't say the same for them out in the workforce or driving somewhere.' Rumors of immigration raids on schools became a turning point When Trump was elected in November after promising to deport immigrants and depicting Venezuelans, in particular, as gang members, González knew it was time to go. He was willing to accept the tradeoff of earning just $50 weekly in his home country, where public schools operate a few hours a day. 'I don't want to be treated like a delinquent,' González said in Spanish. 'I'm from Venezuela and have tattoos. For him, that means I'm a criminal.' It took González months to save up the more than $3,000 he needed to get his family to Venezuela on a series of buses and on foot. He and his wife didn't tell anyone of their plan except the single mom who shared their apartment, afraid to draw attention to themselves. Telling people they wanted to leave would signal they were living here illegally. They sent their children to their Denver school regularly until late February, when González's phone lit up with messages claiming immigration agents were planning raids inside schools. That week, they kept their son home. 'Honestly, we were really scared for our boy,' González said. 'Because we didn't have legal status.' In the months following Trump's inauguration, Denver Public School attendance suffered, according to district data. Attendance districtwide fell by 3% in February compared with the same period last year, with even steeper declines of up to 4.7% at schools primarily serving immigrant newcomer students. The deflated rates continued through March, with districtwide attendance down 1.7% and as much as 3.9% at some newcomer schools. Some parents told Denver school staff they had no plans to approach their children's campus after the Trump administration ended a policy that had limited immigration enforcement at schools. The Denver school district sued the government over that reversal, saying attendance dropped 'noticeably' across all schools, 'particularly those schools in areas with new-to-country families and where ICE raids have already occurred.' A federal judge ruled in March the district failed to prove the new policy caused the attendance decline. Attendance dropped in many schools following Trump's inauguration Data obtained from 15 districts across eight additional states, including Texas, Alabama, Idaho and Massachusetts, showed a similar decline in school attendance after the inauguration for a few weeks. In most places, attendance rebounded sooner than in Denver. From 2022 to 2024, more than 40,000 Venezuelans and Colombian migrants received shelter or other assistance from Denver. Trump said during the campaign he would begin his mass deportation efforts nearby, in the suburb of Aurora, because of alleged Venezuelan gang activity. Nationwide, schools are still reporting immediate drops in daily attendance during weeks when there is immigration enforcement — or even rumors of ICE raids — in their communities, said Hedy Chang of the nonprofit Attendance Works, which helps schools address absenteeism. Dozens of districts didn't respond to requests for attendance data. Some said they feared drawing the attention of immigration enforcement. In late February, González and his wife withdrew their children from school and told administrators they were returning to Venezuela. He posted a goodbye message on a Facebook group for Denver volunteers he used to find work and other help. 'Thank you for everything, friends,' he posted. 'Tomorrow I leave with God's favor.' Immediately, half a dozen Venezuelan and Colombian women asked him for advice on getting back. 'We plan to leave in May, if God allows,' one woman posted in Spanish. In Denver, 3,323 students have withdrawn from school through mid-April – an increase of 686 compared with the same period last year. Denver school officials couldn't explain the uptick. At the 400-student Denver elementary school Andrea Rentería heads, at least two students have withdrawn since the inauguration because of immigration concerns. One is going back to Colombia and the other didn't say where they were headed. School officials in Massachusetts and Washington state have confirmed some students are withdrawing from school to return to El Salvador, Brazil and Mexico. Haitians are trying to go to Mexico or Canada. In Chelsea, Massachusetts, a 6,000-student district where nearly half the students are still learning English, a handful of families have recently withdrawn their children because of immigration concerns. One mother in March withdrew two young children from the district to return to El Salvador, according to district administrator Daniel Mojica. Her 19-year old daughter will stay behind, on her own, to finish school – a sign that these decisions are leading to more family separation. In Bellingham, Washington, two families withdrew their children after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid in early April at a local roofing company, where agents arrested fathers of 16 children attending Bellingham schools. Both families returned to Mexico, family engagement specialist Isabel Meaker said. 'There's a sense, not just with these families, that it's not worth it to fight. They know the end result,' Meaker said. Immigrant families are gathering documents they need to return home Countries with large populations living in the United States are seeing signs of more people wanting to return home. Applications for Brazilian passports from consulates in the U.S. increased 36% in March, compared to the previous year, according to data from the Brazilian Foreign Ministry. Birth registrations, the first step to getting a Brazilian passport for a U.S.-born child, were up 76% in April compared to the previous year. Guatemala reports a 5% increase over last year for passports from its nationals living in the United States. Last month, Melvin Josué, his wife and another couple drove four hours from New Jersey to Boston to get Honduran passports for their American-born children. It's a step that's taken on urgency in case these families decide life in the United States is untenable. Melvin Josué worries about Trump's immigration policy and what might happen if he or his wife is detained, but lately he's more concerned with the difficulty of finding work. Demand for his drywall crew immediately stopped amid the economic uncertainty caused by tariffs. There's also more reluctance, he said, to hire workers here illegally. (The Associated Press agreed to use only his first and middle name because he's in the country illegally and fears being separated from his family.) 'I don't know what we'll do, but we may have to go back to Honduras,' he said. 'We want to be ready.' The size of the exodus and its impact on schools remains unclear, but already some are starting to worry. A consultant working with districts in Texas on immigrant education said one district there has seen a significant drop in summer school sign-ups for students learning English. 'They're really worried about enrollment for the fall,' said Viridiana Carrizales, chief executive officer of ImmSchools, a nonprofit that advises school districts how to meet the needs of immigrant students and their families. Education finance experts predict budget problems for districts with large immigrant populations. 'Every student that walks in the door gets a chunk of money with it, not just federal money, but state and local money, too,' said Marguerite Roza, a Georgetown University professor focusing on education finance. 'If a district had a lot of migrant students in its district, that's a loss of funds potentially there. We think that's a real high risk.' Trump's offer to pay immigrants to leave and help them with transportation could hasten the departures. González, now back in Venezuela, says he wouldn't have accepted the money, because it would have meant registering with the U.S. government, which he no longer trusts. And that's what he's telling the dozens of migrants in the U.S. who contact him each week asking the best way home. Go on your own, he tells them. Once you have the cash, it's much easier going south than it was getting to the U.S. in the first place. ____ Associated Press writer Jocelyn Gecker contributed to this report. ___ The Associated Press' education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
