Mexico warns those in U.S.
Its citizens here face ‘a new reality’ under threats of tougher immigration policy.
MEXICO CITY — The much-publicized deportation of an immigrant who had been living illegally in Arizona prompted the Mexican government on Friday to urge its nationals in the United States to “take precautions” amid a “new reality” for the immigrant community.
The expulsion of Guadalupe Garcia de Rayos, a Mexican citizen and mother of two U.S.-born children, “illustrates the new reality of the Mexican community living in the United States in the face of more severe application of migration controls,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
The ministry urged its citizens to “stay informed about immigration matters”’ and keep in touch with the Mexican consular network in the United States.
However, Mexican authorities acknowledged there is little they can do to slow deportations or counter other get-tough immigration policies of President Trump.
Trump’s threats to step up deportations and his vow to build a wall along the U.S.Mexico border have caused widespread indignation in Mexico — and stirred up anti-U.S sentiments.
Mexican authorities, not wanting to be viewed as compliant to the new U.S. administration, have vowed to boost aid to migrants and returning deportees in a bid to show solidarity with them. Critics have long said such aid was inadequate.
A “Respect for Mexico” protest march assailing Trump’s agenda is scheduled for Sunday in Mexico City. Tens of thousands are expected to participate.
In recent weeks, Mexican politicians have been photographed visiting Mexican communities in the United States or deportees arriving from the north.
President Enrique Peña Nieto met at the Mexico City airport this week with deportees who had just been expelled from the U.S.
Garcia de Rayos, 36, was deported Thursday, a day after she reported in to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Phoenix for what she thought would be a routine “check in” regarding her ongoing deportation case.
Her subsequent detention and deportation sparked protests and made headlines in both the United States and Mexico.
While immigrant rights activists denounced her removal, advocates of stricter immigration controls applauded the move.
Once deported, Garcia de Rayos met with friends and supporters in the Mexican border city of Nogales, in Sonora state. “She’s with her kids right now,” said Lucia Sandoval of the immigration advocacy group Puente Arizona. “Then she goes south.”
Garcia de Rayos was reared in a small Mexican town a 20-hour drive from the U.S. border. Her children, both U.S. citizens, were due to return from Nogales on Friday and rejoin their father, who remains in Phoenix.
From the age of 14, Garcia de Rayos lived in the United States. She was arrested in a workplace enforcement immigration raid in 2008 and convicted of felony identity theft for having false papers she had used to secure work.
It was that felony conviction that ultimately led to her deportation. The Trump administration has said it plans to focus its immigration crackdown on so-called “criminal aliens.”
Immigrant advocates have reported uneasiness and worry in immigrant communities nationwide. In Austin, Texas, the teacher’s union Education Austin released a flier to teachers on Friday, with a section called “What to do if ICE comes to your door.”
The flier, distributed to union members, provides advice to teachers and school support staff on how to react if ICE comes to a school. The advice includes refusing to speak with ICE agents and refusing to open the door to them. “Do not open doors,” the flier reads. “Stay silent.”