María Luisa Cuin had only been in San Diego a few months when her husband was arrested and deported to Mexico. The deportation of the man who was her partner and the father of her children changed her life and that of her family forever.
“The hardest thing was having to be alone when giving birth to my daughter. Their father was deported when I was three months pregnant,” says María Luisa.
It has been 15 years since Raúl Martínez, who was the partner and father of her children, was deported to Mexico.
“That happened between March and April 2009. The following year, he tried to return, and he had already crossed and was in San Ysidro, when they grabbed him again and returned him to Mexico.”
María Luisa and Raúl are from Michoacán, Mexico. They had emigrated to the United States a few months when Raúl was arrested.
“We had come in search of better economic opportunities. Our oldest son was one year, eight months; and she was three months pregnant with the girl.”
Today, his son is 17 years old and his daughter is 14 years old.
He relates that in those first months that they arrived, they settled in the city of Escondido in San Diego County.
“He worked in a nursery, where they grew plants; I, sometimes he cleaned houses,” he remembers.
She says that her children’s father was responsible and a good provider.
“The police arrested him between March and April 2009. It was a weekend, in the afternoon around six or seven. He had gone out to buy some beers. When they stopped him, the officer checked his record, and perhaps found that he owed some fine.”
He remembers that his then partner made a mistake by lying to the officer. When he asked him what he was doing, he said he had gone out to buy diapers, but when he checked his car, he found the beers.
“He arrested him, charged him; and one or two weeks later, they took him out of the country.”
That same year of the deportation, his daughter, who is now 14 years old, was born.
“He tried to return to the country a year later. “I asked for a loan of $3,500 to help them pay for it, but it was not possible.”
When the man gave up his attempt to return to the country, he asked her to go with her children to Mexico.
“I told him no. “I made the decision to stay because I thought my children would have a better life here.”
His then partner and his mother-in-law became angry and reproached him for preferring to remain in the United States.
After five or eight months, the father of her children married in Mexico and started a new life.
“It hurts me because it felt like a betrayal, and I feel like he should have kept trying to cross; he could have returned,” says a saddened María Luisa.
This is how the deportation put an end to their relationship, and separated the family.
“In Mexico we had lived together for about three years; and we were here for about eight months before the deportation. “We never got married.”
He says that at the beginning of the deportation, it was very difficult for him to be the head of the family.
“I depended financially on the father of my children. When I was alone, I was afraid to go out and look for work and not be accepted.”
It was also hard to raise her children alone, and pay for someone to take care of them while she worked.
“I have worked in fruit and vegetable packing plants, struggling to make sure my check is enough for rent, food and clothing.”
Several months ago, she fell and broke her foot, she had emergency surgery; and during recovery she has to use crutches and she has not been able to work.
“I had to go to Los Angeles County social services. “They have helped me pay the rent and with food.”
María Luisa pays $800 for a room in a house in South Los Angeles where they let her use the bathroom and kitchen. He shares the room with her two children.
“My daughter has never met her father. For her he is a stranger. “My son doesn’t remember him.”
He definitely says that the deportation destroyed his family. Her children practically have no relationship with their father.
“The hardest moments have been when I gave birth alone; or when I had to go to the hospital to have my foot operated on.”
She says that all those experiences have been very painful, but at the same time they have made her stronger.
A few months after the deportation, he decided to leave San Diego and come to live in Los Angeles, also wanting to find better opportunities.
“I have two brothers and a sister here, and they have supported me a lot when they can.”
Her oldest son will finish high school next year and wants to pursue a career in technology, while her daughter wants to work in the beauty industry.
Aren’t you worried about Trump’s return as president?
“I am not afraid. He does his job, and he follows the laws. I am a believer in God and I trust that he will protect my children and me.”
He says that even with the difficult life he has led in the United States, he does not regret having emigrated and not returning to Mexico.
“I don’t regret it, and I do want to return when my children grow up and can take care of themselves. “My dream is to make my house in Mexico on land that I have in my town.”
Meanwhile he says he has many projects.
“In two months, the doctor told me that I will be able to walk. I used to sell new and used clothes on the streets and it did very well; I also sell food and desserts; and to distract myself, I have been making woven bags for cell phones that I have put up for sale.”
Raúl Martínez was deported during the first year of President Obama’s administration, considered the president who has expelled the most immigrants from the United States.
Between 2009 and 2015, it deported more than 2.5 million people. Such numbers led pro-immigrant organizations to call him “deporter in chief.”