A mom from Arizona has been deported to Mexico after 21 years of living in the United States. Her two teenage children who were born in America are now without their mother. They are vowing to fight the immigration order.
Guadalupe García de Rayos, 36, is an undocumented immigrant who was sent back to her native country Wednesday, Feb. 8, after her yearly meeting with the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Due to President Donald Trump's immigration order to deport any undocumented with a criminal record, García de Rayos' case became a priority.
García de Rayos arrived illegally in the U.S. when she was 14, Inside Edition reports. She was arrested in 2008 for using a fake Social Security Number for work. She appealed her case and in compliance with immigration, she has been meeting with the ICE very year since her arrest as part of her check-in agreement.
García de Rayos was due to meet with ICE again when Trump imposed the immigration order. The mom was advised by her lawyer, Ray Maldonado, and activists groups to forego this meet knowing she could be deported. She chose to comply and face whatever happened head on.
"I don't regret it, because I know I did this so that more families could see what's in store, what could happen, and so that they could know what they could risk," García de Rayos said during a press conference when she got deported in Mexico, CNN reports. She wants to make it clear, however, the crime she committed was done out of need -- a job to support her children.
Her family, headed by husband Aaron Rayos, is hoping that her case will get a reprieve considering it's a felony conviction that does not involve violence. Her daughter Jacqueline, 14, and son, Angel, 16, will be allowed to visit her in Mexico.
"When I see my mom, the first thing I'm going to do is hug her and tell her I love her," the 14-year-old said, according to Teen Vogue. "I fully expect to get her back home."
"We want her back, back in our arms," Angel said during the protest rally after his mom's deportation. "We want her back, over here where she belongs. She belongs with us."
