A Gen Xer self-deported to Mexico after 36 years in the US for a safer, more affordable life: "I feel a sense of relief"
Higuera decided returning to her birth country would be safer and help her save money.
Leaving her children and grandchildren was difficult, but she got to reconnect with her 90-year-old mother.
Regina Higuera built a life in the United States. As a single mother in Los Angeles, she raised three American-born children and worked in the garment industry, making pennies per sewn item.
Now, she's moved back to Mexico, the country she left 36 years ago, because Immigration and Customs Enforcement ramped up operations in Southern California this summer.
Data analysis by The New York Times found that ICE arrests have increased by 124% since last year. President Donald Trump's new budget includes $75 billion in extra funding for ICE to bolster immigration enforcement.
"We must expand efforts to detain and deport illegal aliens in America's largest cities," Trump wrote on TruthSocial last month. "I have directed my entire administration to put every resource possible behind this effort."
Higuera, 51, who did not have legal documentation to live and work in the US, was faced with an ultimatum: Stay and risk detention and deportation or voluntarily say goodbye to her children and grandchildren.
"I was really sad that I was leaving my family behind," Higuera told Business Insider. "But at the same time, I was happy that I was going to be able to see my mom, whom I haven't been able to see in 22 years."
Her daughter Julie Ear shared her family's journey to repatriate her mother online. "Come with me to self-deport my mom," she said in a video posted to social media. The moment went viral online, garnering millions of views on Instagram and TikTok.
"We're driving from LA down to TJ to drop her off at the airport, and she'll be flying to Mexico City," Ear said, referring to Tijuana, Mexico.
Higuera was anxious at first that she might be questioned while crossing the US-Mexico border, but everything went smoothly, and she arrived at the Tijuana International Airport with three hours to spare.
"Once we crossed the border into Tijuana, Mexico, I felt a sense of relief," Higuera said. " I am finally home safe, and no one can take that away from me."
Living a better, more affordable life in Mexico
In May, the Trump administration announced a new program to incentivize immigrants without legal status to leave the US by offering them a $1,000 stipend. The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to comment on how many immigrants without legal status have applied for the program.
As Higuera and her family were weighing their options, they were watching ICE raids escalate in volume and violence across Southern California. Dozens of viral videos reposted by local news outlets like the Los Angeles Times and LA Taco show federal law enforcement officers using physical force and threats to detain migrants, immigrant activists, and US citizens.
Higuera decided not to apply for the funding and chose to leave on her own.
"I was mostly scared of her getting detained by ICE agents here," Ear told Business Insider. She worried her Gen X mother could be mistreated in federal custody. Investigative reporting by NPR showed that ICE detention centers can be overcrowded and lack food and medical care.
Plus, rent in LA had gotten too expensive for Higuera, who had been splitting $1,700 monthly with her husband and son. As a garment worker, her pay would range between $500 and $1,000 a week. To make ends meet, Higuera also did gig work, delivering food with Uber Eats and DoorDash.
"It was a recurring cycle that we have been working for years: living paycheck to paycheck and have nothing to show," Higuera said.
Higuera said that the cost of living in Mexico is dramatically lower, even though the move itself was expensive. The four-hour flight from Tijuana to Mexico City cost $243, and Higuera had to drive an additional five hours to her home state, Guerrero. Higuera said it cost her over $4,000 to move all her belongings across the border.
To defray the costs, her daughter put together a GoFundMe that has raised $2,635. In Mexico, Higuera said, the cost of living is so much cheaper than in the US; she estimated that she needs to make $500 to $800 a month to live comfortably.
"I have my small two-bedroom house where I don't have to pay rent," she said of a parcel of land she owns that she's been building on for years. "All I have to worry about is my living expenses." Her home is still a work in progress, but Higuera is already enjoying her new residence, which is near her extended family.
Higuera is now semi-retired and looking for side gigs to cover her living expenses. "I honestly have no idea how much I could make out here," Higuera said. She isn't sure what kind of employment is available, but Higuera's semi-rural town still has economic opportunities. Before leaving, she packed some jewelry and items she could sell as a street vendor. "I know that I can always sell things out here the same way I did back in LA."
As she settles in, Higuera can finally see a future that isn't clouded with financial stress or fear. She hopes that her husband can join her soon and that her kids and grandchildren, who are US citizens, can visit her.
Higuera said the best part of coming back home is making up for lost time with her 90-year-old mother. "I love that my mom is just a couple of steps from me, and I have breakfast with her every morning."
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