Mexico boosts efforts to help its citizens facing deportation from U.S.
MIAMI – A crackdown on illegal immigration under President Donald Trump has led Mexican government officials to ramp up efforts to help Mexicans stay in South Florida amid mass arrests and deportations.
The Consulate General of Mexico in Miami is one of 50 in the U.S. that the Mexican government told to increase measures to protect Mexican citizens in the U.S.
Earlier this year, Mexico’s President Enrique Peña Nieto pledged $50 million to the consulates to help with legal defense.
Officials say they will do more to educate people on what to do during run-ins with police or, if it comes down to it, how to plan their return to Mexico.
Horacio Saavedra, 71, took the helm as the Miami consul general in May and is spearheading the outreach efforts. He stepped into his new role amid a sharp rise in arrests and deportations of undocumented immigrants by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Since last year, the number of undocumented-immigrant arrests and deportations by ICE agents in the Miami office has nearly doubled.
Saavedra, who previously was consul general in Frankfurt, Germany, said one of his priorities now is to reverse a stereotype that Mexican criminals are flooding the U.S.
“The people coming here are doctors, lawyers, students and professionals,” Saavedra said.
He pointed to Mexicanowned companies investing in Florida, such as concrete supplier CEMEX, which provides about 3,000 jobs in the state. He also noted Grupo Mexico, which bought the Florida East Coast Railway earlier this year.
“Florida is important to Mexico,” Saavadra said from his office in the Brickell financial district. “And Mexico is important to Florida.”
While embassies handle official diplomacy between foreign countries, consulates oversee local commercial activities and assist citizens, which includes helping them find lawyers during run-ins with immigration law enforcement.
Saavedra’s office represents Mexico to Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties, as well as 10 other counties in Florida.
The consulate’s fourstory building sits tucked among skyscrapers in downtown Miami, bearing Mexico’s flag and a large red sculpture crafted by a Mexican artist.
On Wednesday about lunchtime, nearly two dozen people sat in the firstfloor lobby, which looked similar to a Department of Motor Vehicles office.
A young couple with their newborn son waited in line to get a birth certificate. Another couple corralled two kids and a stroller while they checked on an application.
Racks in the lobby were strewn with flyers detailing information on what to do if you’re arrested or deported. “Designate a guardian to take care of your children in case of an event,” one read in Spanish.
Desk workers bounced back and forth between answering ringing phones and helping visitors.
Aside from receiving legal documentation help, people stop in for help with their finances, estate planning, health care resources and assistance with starting a business. Other day-today tasks include issuing passports and promoting tourism to their home country.
On any given day, about 100 people go to the consulate in Miami, an uptick from last year, consulate officials said.
Of the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S., half are from Mexico, according to estimates from the nonpartisan Pew Research Center. Between 810,000 and 890,000 undocumented immigrants live in Florida, though not all are from Mexico.
Saavedra said he also was brought in to spearhead outreach efforts to Mexican communities and South Florida cities.
During his first seven months, Saavedra has received the key to the city of Fort Lauderdale and recently worked with the city on a Day of the Dead festival.
Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jack Seiler said Saavedra brought a “tremendous amount of energy and enthusiasm.”
“I’ve been very impressed with his community outreach,” Seiler said. “His job is all about relationships, and he’s very good at building relationships.”