We call on you to immediately halt the deportation of Mariola.

Mariola came to Massachusetts fleeing violence and persecution in Guatemala. Since arriving 16 years ago, she has worked hard and made tremendous contributions in her new home. It would be wrong to deport this beloved member of the community, separating her from her US citizen son and denying her the safety and freedom from persecution she came here to find.

From an early age, Mariola experienced discrimination, exploitation, poverty, and abuse based on her indigenous Mayan identity. She lived through the terrors of a civil war in Guatemala that targeted indigenous communities and ravaged the country. At the age of just 12, she traveled alone to Guatemala City to find work and help support her family. There she faced discrimination and humiliation. After returning to her family’s ancestral lands, violent conflicts nearly left Mariola’s father dead and forced her entire family to escape the area. When an abusive non-indigenous man threatened the lives of Mariola and her unborn child, she knew she would not receive protection from the government – she had seen the authorities carry out systemic injustices against indigenous people her entire life. So she made the only viable choice she saw, and fled to the U.S. in search of safety.

Mariola has spent the last 16 years building a life for herself and her son in Massachusetts. While balancing work and childcare as a single mother, she learned English, earned her associate’s degree, and is now completing her Bachelor’s degree in Education at Salem State University.

Mariola works as a paraprofessional at a Lynn elementary school and is a member of the Lynn Teacher’s Union. She is also a trained medical interpreter and frequently volunteers to provide interpretation for community organizations and the parents of children at her school. She takes part in community groups and has led healing circles to support neighbors dealing with serious trauma. And she’s a beloved member of Saint Joseph Catholic church in Lynn. Mariola is extremely proud of her son, who is now 15 years old, loves to learn, and is a talented soccer player.

In the summer of 2013, Mariola was racially profiled while driving, then pulled over and arrested for an alleged traffic offense. Because information was shared by local police with ICE, this incident resulted in her being almost immediately placed in deportation proceedings. There was great concern in the community and she was granted a stay of removal. Since then, Mariola has diligently appeared for check-ins at the Burlington ICE office every year.

But at this year’s appointment she was told to return on May 11 and be prepared to be detained. This was terrifying news and Mariola’s first thought was “What will happen to my son if I’m not around?” Her son, who suffers from chronic health issues and has grown up with the constant fear of seeing his mother deported, is now facing a potential reality no child should ever have to deal with. If Mariola is deported he would be left with no parent in the country where he was born and raised.

Please halt the deportation and keep Mariola with her son and in the community where she belongs!