Over the past weekend, the U.S. military conducted an operation in Venezuela that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, the Trump administration confirmed. The action has sparked significant controversy within the international community, with reactions ranging from support for Maduro's ousting to staunch defense of Venezuela's sovereignty.
Amid these heated discussions, the personal stories of those caught in this political turmoil often go unnoticed. Last year, the Port of Entry team began reporting on the conditions that foreshadowed events unfolding today through the experience of one Venezuelan mother.
We spoke with a Venezuelan woman who asked not to be identified because she lacks legal status in the U.S. and fears deportation. She left the country after living conditions reached a critical point. Issues such as water shortages, food insecurity, unemployment, and widespread insecurity forced her to seek change, she said, despite facing harassment and hostility for her advocacy efforts.
In late 2016, she and her 10-year-old son left behind family and a familiar life to escape the crisis. They traveled to Mexico, hoping to reunite with her estranged husband in Los Angeles via Tijuana. He had left Venezuela five years earlier.
In pursuit of a better future, she faced challenges familiar to many migrants. She said that in 2022, under President Joe Biden, a legal pathway — the Humanitarian Parole Program — allowed her to enter the U.S. and reunite her family. However, she said that the situation changed when President Trump took office in January 2025.
Her migration story reflects resilience and highlights the human impact of political turmoil, regardless of political ideology. Her experiences offer nuance in an intensely polarized political moment.
Listen to her story in more detail in the two “Illegal by Decree” episodes from the Port of Entry podcast, available both in English and Spanish.
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This episode explores the first chapter of a Venezuelan woman’s migration journey—her departure from Venezuela and her efforts to reunite with her family in the United States via Tijuana. -
The second part of this series follows a Venezuelan woman's path into the United States, detailing the legal efforts she undertook to enter the country and the challenges she faced navigating the immigration system.
