A Syracuse woman who won her asylum case is worried that she and her family will get swept up in the Trump administration’s ongoing deportation orders.
The woman came to Central New York from Guatemala 13 years ago, and is in the process of applying for residency. Her husband does not share the same status. They have four children ranging in age from two to 16, work in agriculture, and have no criminal record. WAER News agreed not to reveal her identity because she fears for her family’s safety. She spoke through an interpreter.
“I read a statement that they're only looking for people who committed crimes, but obviously if you're there in the moment, they're not going to look the other way and it won't matter if you've committed a crime or not," she said. "You'll just be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
She said the children are never left alone and they live in a constant fear that either she or her husband will be targeted simply because of their appearance.
“We're all terrified," she said. "At least me every time I leave the house without my kids, I say goodbye to my kids and I tell them that I love them and that if I don't come home that I will see them again and that they will be OK.”
She said authorities may not even give someone time to produce documents. She urged other parents facing similar circumstances to make sure they have plans for their children.
“My husband and I have filled out a custody [agreement] for our children so that if one of us is detained or deported that a certain person who we trust will have custody of our children," she said. "Then that person will send my children to me and it would be very difficult in a place that they don't know but at least we would be together.”
She said the children’s life here in the U.S. is all they know. They either arrived here from Guatemala as toddlers or were born here. They’re enrolled in school, and English is their first language. She says they’re all hoping for a miracle that nothing will happen to their family.
