Alfredo Juarez Zeferino, who resided in the United States since age eight after arriving without documentation, now lives in Mexico after agreeing to leave the country. He asserts that he was targeted by immigration authorities due to his extensive history as a farmworker organizer, a belief he explicitly stated when questioned.
As a teenager, Juarez Zeferino played a significant role in establishing a farmworker union and organized an international boycott against the berry company Driscoll. He has also been a vocal critic of guest worker programs, contending that they displace domestic workers and favor foreign laborers who he argues are more susceptible to exploitation and mistreatment. Juarez Zeferino suggests that the agricultural industry’s pursuit of replacing local workers with imported guest workers contributed to what he characterizes as the Trump administration’s “war on farmworker activists.”
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding these allegations. While Juarez Zeferino is among a growing number of individuals who have agreed to leave the U.S. after arriving without documentation, available data does not specify how many, like him, departed following an arrest. He is currently pursuing legal avenues to return to the United States.
Source: www.theguardian.com