Heidy Sánchez’s American dream shattered when she was deported from Florida to Cuba, leaving behind her 17-month-old daughter, Kailyn, a U.S. citizen. This drastic separation took place as Sánchez was in the midst of breastfeeding her daughter. This moment made clear the deep emotional distress she was feeling. Her husband, Carlos, also a naturalized U.S. citizen, resides in the United States. Today, the family is still looking for reunification and garnering fierce, increasing support—both wings of Cuban-American community.
In 2019, Sánchez chronicled her experience stepping like many other undocumented migrants into the U.S. from Mexico. She approached this country hoping for a better life for herself and her children. Once included in the “Remain in Mexico” program, she endured several legal hurdles, including one immigration hearing that she failed to attend. She was immediately detained after an expedited ICE appointment. This event forever altered her family’s course.
Like Sánchez while in ICE facilities, she was shuffled around before her quick deportation to Cuba. Her attorney, Claudia Cañizares, emphasized the humanitarian considerations present in Sánchez’s case. She asserted that if Sanchez were forced out, Kailyn’s well-being would be negatively impacted. “In cases like this, there are very strong humanitarian factors, and [Heidy] did not deserve to be removed the way she was,” Cañizares stated.
Kailyn has experienced debilitating seizures, which pose serious health risks with her mother no longer there. Sánchez’s words eloquently recount the deportation experience. “I told them, ‘don’t take away my daughter,’” she recalled. Despite her pleas, Sánchez faced the reality of separation when agents informed her, “Call the father to come get her, you are staying here.”
Sánchez and Carlos’s story started in Mexico—back to when they first crossed paths. Following numerous in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles, they finally settled down to raise a family of their own. She had aspirations to someday work as a nursing assistant. Her dreams were to build a better life for her daughter and family. Kailyn is once again with her father, which serves up an entirely new shitstorm of uncertainty. It leaves the family to fight an uphill war moving forward.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is committed to ensuring the safety and security of all children. Protect its residents but will engage deeply with federal law enforcement to be sure their own residents’ safety is prioritized. “We take our responsibility to protect children seriously and will continue to work with federal law enforcement to ensure that children are safe and protected,” said Tricia McLaughlin from DHS.
Sánchez’s case illustrates what it means to live in fear and uncertainty for the many families trapped in the maelstrom of U.S. immigration law. Though she had always obeyed the law and never got even a parking ticket, she suddenly found herself ensnared in an oppressive system. In the end, that system was responsible for her deportation.
As Sánchez grapples with the loss of her daughter and the American dream she once envisioned, she reflects on her dreams for her family. “I don’t know if it was the American dream,” she shared. “But it was my dream, my family.”
