The Rhizome Center for Migrants

Since 2018, The Rhizome Center for Migrants has served as a lifeline for people deported from the United States. The Rhizome Center for Migrants operates in Guadalajara, Mexico, and was founded during the first Trump administration. Since our organization's founding, we remain one of only a handful of organizations in Mexico ready to respond to not only the immediate but mid- to long-term needs of people deported from the United States. Our U.S. post-deportation legal aid clinic provides pro bono legal aid services, and our humanitarian presence in the interior of Mexico is critical as we gear up for a second Trump administration.

Donald Trump has vowed to begin a plan aimed at expelling every undocumented immigrant in the United States, beginning January 20th. With Tom Homan, architect of the "zero tolerance" policy, at the helm, we expect that plan will be carried out ruthlessly. We know that any mass deportation will include spouses of U.S. citizens, parents, college graduates, the elderly, the disabled, green card holders including U.S. veterans, and community leaders and members. Some U.S. citizen children caught in the mix will be forced into foster care, or de facto deported with their parents. We expect that Donald Trump and Tom Homan will be able to affect over 400,000 deportations a year, the most deportations carried out in American history to date.

While Mexico's president promises to defend the rights of Mexicans in the interior, no mention has been made nor has a budget been set aside to defend the rights of deported Mexicans in Mexican territory. Throughout U.S.-Mexico deportation history, Mexico has failed to adequately receive its own citizens, instead creating barriers that make it difficult, if not impossible, for those forcibly returned from the United States to receive the help they need. In a hostile environment, nonprofit organizations like The Rhizome Center for Migrants are left to fill in where the government is purposefully absent.

How we serve:

The Rhizome Center for Migrants is the only deportation-focused pro bono legal aid clinic in Mexico, and one of very few on this side of the border staffed by a U.S. attorney. This year, alone, we have been able to:

— Restore lawful permanent status to two (2) U.S. veterans of the U.S. Army and Marine Corps;

— File two (2) federal pardon applications with President Biden that, if approved, would open the pathway to citizenship;

— Secure humanitarian parole for a spouse returning her husband’s ashes to his mother to fulfill his last wish, to be buried at a VA cemetery;

— File an adjustment of status and waiver application to secure a client's green card and permanently rejoin a family separated by cruel immigration policies;

— File an application for advance permission to reenter as a nonimmigrant for a U-visa approved client;

— Secure identification documents for a deported Central American asylum seeker who has been undocumented almost his entire life, first in the United States and now in Mexico; and, among many other successes,

— Restore identity to 13 U.S. citizen minors who lacked the proper identification documentation to enroll in school in Mexico—in one case, for over 16 years.

How you can help:

We believe that rights do not end at the border. We are here as we always have been to lend a hand and to help people get back on their feet again and to get back home to their families. The time ahead will be a difficult one, but with your help and solidarity, we will persevere.

Our organization has urgent needs to ensure that we are prepared to face the upcoming challenges. At the end of this year, we will lose our community working space, which has been a critical meeting place for clients, community members, volunteers, and stakeholders. We are also urgently looking to expand our team, which for a long time has operated as a volunteer organization under the leadership of one employee, who wears all hats. Your donation will make it possible for us to obtain a physical space where we can work, hire a new attorney and a social worker, and strengthen our ability to reach those who need our help most.

We are fundraising to help Veronica remain in the United States permanently with her family.

Veronica is a military spouse and the wife of Sgt. Ricardo Pineda, a 100% disabled veteran who honorably served the United States during her time of need. Despite his service to the U.S. Army and the military's policy on family unification, Sgt. Pineda was never able to fix his wife's immigration status. Veronica and Ricardo have four children, all U.S. citizens. Two of their children have serious neurological disorders, including cerebral palsy and permanent brain injury that resulted after receiving pediatric heart surgery. Veronica is the primary caretaker for many of her family members, including her husband and special needs children. She is desperately needed by her family in the United States.

The Rhizome Center for Migrants met Veronica in Guadalajara, Mexico. The family made the decision to leave the United States in an attempt to correct Veronica's immigration situation. However, the conditions proved to be too overwhelming for the family and in the end, only Veronica and her son, who is brain damaged and requires an immediate heart valve replacement, remained in Mexico, causing the family additional anxiety over Juan's health condition and safety.

The Rhizome Center for Migrants was able to help Veronica return to the United States with parole earlier this year and reunite with her family. Her parole expires next year. In the meantime, we are working hard to ensure that Veronica's return to her family will be permanent, and we are preparing her adjustment of status application. The associated filing fees total $2,490, an enormous price for a family that is still reestablishing itself in the United States while preparing for Juan's upcoming surgery. Any additional amount raised will be transferred to the family.

This Giving Tuesday, November 29, and throughout the holiday season, we hope you will consider donating to The Rhizome Center for Migrants as we continue our mission to defend and empower migrant communities and their families.

Who we serve:

In 2018, The Rhizome Center for Migrants was founded to support and defend forcibly displaced persons and uprooted people at risk around the world. The organization’s Mexico Project, based in Guadalajara, Mexico, serves deported and returned migrants and their families through legal aid, advocacy, and reintegration support.

In the last 15 years, more than 4 million Mexican migrants have been deported from the United States. A quarter of the people deported in recent years are parents of U.S.-born children, and still more are married to American citizens. Return and deportation affect DACA recipients, immigrant veterans, women, children, and older migrants. The Rhizome Center for Migrants is one of a handful of organizations in Mexico and the world focusing on the rights and needs of the returned and deported, and we remain a lifeline to deported migrants and their families in Western Central Mexico.

With your critical donations, we are:

—ensuring the deported have access to their earned benefits and U.S. legal aid in matters affecting their rights in the United States and the rights of their family members in Mexico;