Click here to read the original profile we ran on Esmeralda in October, 2020. Esmeralda fled Guerrero, Mexico in 2019 with her three youngest children. Her family had experienced persecution and death threats for 13 years, but the violence in her town had grown to a fever pitch. She arrived in Nogales, Sonora and put her family’s names on a list. It was the first of 543 days they would spend there, waiting for the chance to seek asylum at the port of entry. “Everything got paralyzed for us … [Read more...]

Mauricio decided to leave his hometown in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala,  in search of economic opportunity. As with many towns, Covid-19 and the hurricanes last year had decimated the local economy. People all around him were struggling to survive, let alone make ends meet. Eventually, he decided to take his chances in the US and try to build a life there. When he reached the Mexico side of the US - Mexico border, he was placed with a group of about thirty-five other migrants and several guides … [Read more...]

Originally from Pueba, Mexico, Belicia is a single mother of three daughters. She fled her hometown when the threats of violence against her and her daughters escalated into death threats. They arrived in Nogales, Sonora in February of 2020. Initially, they were hoping to cross the border and seek asylum, but the Covid-19 pandemic quickly threw the border into greater chaos.  That search for stability and safety over the past year has illustrated the challenges of mothering in migration, … [Read more...]

Yanet’s husband began verbally abusing her when she was pregnant with their first daughter, Emily, who is now nine years old. Once Emily was born, the abuse became physical and persisted over the years until just a few months ago when Yanet was finally able to escape and flee to the US-Mexico border to seek protection. For nine years, Yanet was trapped emotionally, physically, and economically under the tight grip of her husband. He threatened to kill her, the children, and Yanet’s mother if she … [Read more...]

“I feel like the whole world is crying out, going crazy, knowing that we are not together,” says Diosmany. “How is it that we can be together for ten years, committed to each other for ten years, and then the U.S., a third party can come in and tear us apart like that?” Diosmany, still in shock, tells the story of how he and his wife, Lisday were separated at the U.S.-Mexico border last month while attempting to seek asylum near Yuma. Both from Cuba, Diosmany and Lidsay fled political … [Read more...]