Fidel Rivera, a Raleigh, North Carolina resident who lived in the U.S. without legal status for 30 years, has decided to self-deport to Mexico due to concerns about detention and deportation amid stricter immigration enforcement. According to ABC News, Rivera is among a growing number of undocumented individuals making this choice. He entered the U.S. at age 18 and has been a husband and father in the country for 19 years. His wife and two daughters are all American citizens.
He worked as an electrician and paid taxes but was unable to adjust his legal status due to his unauthorized entry into the U.S., according to his U.S. citizen wife, Jennifer Rivera. Despite their marriage and their children’s citizenship, she stated that he must leave the country, as reported by The News & Observer. He chose to leave voluntarily following the Trump administration’s pledge to arrest and deport individuals without lawful status, a message reiterated by DHS Secretary Kristi Noem in a statement made a year earlier.
The implications of these policies are considerable. The Center for Migration Studies reports that nearly 5 million mixed-status families, those with at least one undocumented member, are at risk of mass deportations, as per ABC11.
Since returning to Mexico and settling on the Yucatan Peninsula, Rivera has expressed deep sadness over being separated from his family. He shared that he did not want his family to see him arrested and detained. Meanwhile, his family remains in the U.S. so his daughters can finish high school and his wife can prepare for retirement. Due to current policies, Rivera now faces a wait of ten years before he can apply for legal status in the U.S.
