S1: Okay.
S2: Last episode , Chama was telling us about her exodus out of Venezuela and her odyssey into LA via Tijuana. Almost.
S1: Almost.
S2: After a two hour long interview. Our producer Julio and her broke for some dinner.
S3: In and out.
S4:
S2: In and out burgers. Chama is in her third year in the US since arriving to LA legally , thanks to policies set forth by former President Joe Biden.
S4: And a lot has happened since that first episode came out.
S2: A lot of which impacts Chama directly.
S5: Got some breaking news now that could impact the future of hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans in the U.S. under temporary protected status , the U.S. Supreme Court is allowing the Trump administration to strip their legal protections.
S4: On the way to In and Out. We wanted to understand Sharma's transition between Tijuana and LA. A bit more.
S2: Julio asked about her living situation while her marriage was going through the rocks. How did she cope with the inconsistent support coming from her estranged husband in LA ? While she was waiting it out in Tijuana. Odai.
S6: Odai. Cuando la primera. Cuatro. Me fui I an al mismo. Donde mi mejor Amiga de Tijuana. Su hijo del mejor amigo de mi.
S4: She mentioned she switched apartments to a more affordable area in one of Tijuana's working class neighborhoods.
S2: In the housing projects in the Bellas Artes neighborhood near the Otay Border Crossing. Given the proximity to the border , the area is full of working class Americans who crossed north of the border every day to work in the neighboring city of San Diego. Racist.
S3: Racist. Ghetto.
S6: Ghetto.
S4: Ghetto assured that the area is pretty rough , but for her , considering what she left back in Caracas , it was still a significant improvement.
S2: And despite how rundown the area was , there was a silver lining. Chama made a long lasting best friend in Tijuana , Carolina. She lived in the same housing projects in the apartment building next to Sharma's.
S4: Her kid and Sharma's son became best friends and went to school together.
S2: It was Chama and Catalina's friendship that would prove to become a pillar of support during her transition into LA.
S4: If you're just tuning in , we are continuing with Gemma's story.
S2: A Venezuelan exile from Caracas who was forced out of her country after the unbearable living conditions and harassment from the Venezuelan authorities , pushed her out.
S4: In case you missed part one , pause this episode. Go back , take a listen , and then come back to this timestamp. But if you refuse to listen to that amazing story that is part one , well , we'll just fill you with some of the details. Take it away.
S2: Helen Reddy Sharma isn't our guests real name ? It's a pseudonym we're using to protect her identity as she's currently undocumented. After the parole and temporary protected status programs for Venezuelan migrants were revoked by the Trump administration.
S4: Sharma left Venezuela in 2016 with her son , with the objective to be reunited in LA with her now estranged spouse. Via the I 130 or family reunification visa , he left Venezuela a few years before charming her son did the same.
S2: But unlike Sharma , he is a binational of Venezuela and another country viewed more favorably by the US State Department , which means he was able to get a green card to enter the US.
S4: Chema arrived in Tijuana first in late 2016 to have their family be geographically closer to each other while they found a legal path to L.A..
S2: She was there for six years and faced a number of challenges while living there.
S4: Among them was that Sharma's husband was inconsistent with his financial support throughout her stay in Taiwan , and placed most of the financial burden on her.
S2: To help make ends meet. Sharma worked 48 hours a week as an office administrator at dental clinics in Taiwan.
S4: Another challenge was that Sharma had her legal status lapse in Mexico.
S2: As she was looking for a way out of that situation there. Fate had other plans.
S7: The Biden administration is rolling out a new program that will allow up to 24,000 asylum seekers from Venezuela to enter the country lawfully , in an effort to deter illegal crossings.
S8: Starting today , if you don't apply through the legal process , you will not be eligible for this new parole program.
S2: After the Biden administration opened parole status for Venezuelans in late 2022. Chama jumped on the opportunity to be closer to her family , but that meant making a difficult decision.
S4: Leaving her son behind in Tijuana temporarily.
S2: All cut up now ? Okay , good.
S4: Last episode , we told the first part of Sharma's journey , her odyssey out of Venezuela , and her determination to reunite with her family starting in Tijuana.
S2: Today , we're going to explore her path into the United States. The Herculean effort to do it the legal way and despite her persistence , how the system has ultimately failed her.
S4: This is a special report. Illegal by decree , part two.
S2: From KPBS. This is Port of Entry.
S4: Where we tell cross-border stories that connect us.
S2: I'm Alan Lilienthal.
S4: And I'm Natalie Gonzalez. You're listening to. Port of entry.
S2: During her time in Tijuana , LA had been the North Star for years , the place where her son would finally reunite with his father , where she would get the support she needed as a mother , and where.
S4: Despite there not being a romantic relationship anymore.
S2: The family could reunite and find stability at the time , while Chama pursued parole to the US. She needed to find a pathway for the family to be together.
S4: At that time , the main obstacle was not legal but financial.
S2: Before moving to La , Chama and her estranged husband had an honest discussion about the cost of living there. He presented her with a harsh reality.
S4: He couldn't afford a place for the three of them , something she already suspected , given his inconsistent support for mama and her son during her time in Taiwan.
S2: He was subletting a small room in a house that was barely large enough for two people , let alone three.
S6: Alone in Los Angeles. No ammo , no solar.
S4: Even if they could find a new place. Neither Chema nor her husband had a sufficiently stable income to prove to a landlord they could afford a two bedroom apartment in L.A..
S2: And without a stable income. Chamo was afraid they would be at high risk of ending up homeless.
S9: No no no no. No.
S2: Chama savings could only cover a small part of what was required. It simply wasn't feasible for Chama son to join them in LA at that time. Plucking her son out of Tijuana to bring him to LA just wasn't the best choice. Without a stable home for him to land in.
S4: And uprooting her son in the middle of the school year didn't make sense.
S2: Sharma and her husband needed to work , save money and improve their credit to one day afford a place for the three of them.
S4: Faced with this tough reality. Chama was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
S2: Luckily , Chama had a solution in her best friend Catalina , who agreed to become her son's guardian while Chama found her footing in La Casa de.
S6: La nueva familia mi Amiga. Cueva Bermejo a su casa. Todos Los dias y practica. Estaba a todo el dia igual estaban clases terminar el ano escolar.
S4: Chama son would continue to live in Sharma's apartment , while Catalina ensured he was well fed , fit , attended school and remain safe.
S2: He would attend school and after classes he would head to Catalina's home to eat , do his homework , and spend the afternoon there. Later , he would return to Chalmers apartment to sleep.
S6: And don't say class. Regresa. Directo a la casa. Regresa a casa de mi Amiga con me. Ahi estaba ellos en la tarde. Después de la noche Como se viva la a la casa a dormir.
S2: So that was the plan. Chama son would have to remain in Tijuana , in their apartment in the various artist housing projects , while Chama and her husband saved up for a bigger place and for the family reunification visa so that he could legally join them.
S4: It wasn't a complete separation , but it did make Chema anxious. A lot could happen to a young man alone in a city like Tijuana.
S6: Muchos mucho sentimiento encontrar. Tristeza. As a general.
S2: Your feelings of guilt and anxiety , along with the emptiness of missing her son , often clouded her thoughts. Solution.
S6: Solution. Rapido. No se lamento. No se siente Mali y todo. Pero si te para a hasta la Montana divina.
S2: Yet she knew she had to stay focused and keep moving forward.
S6: She made a la masi puedo parar. No tengo option de la tampoco puedo en el lomo porque two mesas decision Manos. Heartbroken.
S2: Heartbroken. And with all that sorrow weighing her down , Chama soldiered on.
S6: Sarita seguir adelante a hacer dinero y la suficiente Fondo para poder al Cuéllar un espacio propio.
S2: There was no choice but to persist and ensure she earned enough to secure a larger home for the three of them. Nevertheless , every other week , Thomas husband would drive down and pick up their son in Tijuana and drive back to LA to spend the weekend together.
S4: He , like his father , had dual citizenship from Venezuela and another country that facilitated a tourist visa into the US.
S2: His visits made the wait more bearable for Chama , but she knew they needed to act fast , save money and get the family back together for good.
S4: Finally arriving in L.A. after six years of leaving Venezuela was a breakthrough in Sharma's migrant journey. Even with her heart still in Tijuana.
S2: Sharma's parole status allowed her to request a work permit. But even that process took a while and cost her much of her hard earned savings.
S4: So Sharma would have to get to it.
S2: Find work in LA ASAP.
S6: Yo ! Yo realidad muy adamant Como yo Taiwan con me. Super. Donde ? Mega director. Clinica dental. Yo con trabajo del director. Clinica dental in Beverly Hills. Porque.
S2: Brimming with overconfidence from directing two dental clinics in Tijuana. She applied to do the same in a dental clinic in Beverly Hills.
S4: After all , she was the top administrator of those clinics.
S6:
S2: Not so much. Her English wasn't up to what the clinic needed. She struggled. Now , looking back , she finds humor in those times , especially when she recalls how she used to answer the phone.
S10: Hello ? No , no. Teléfono.
S6: Teléfono. Terrible. No , no , no puedo esto. No lo mismo. Tijuana. Beverly Hills. Knows.
S2: What she doesn't remember so fondly is how the owner of that dental clinic tried to take advantage of her legal status.
S4: Mind you , she was cleared to work.
S2: Her work permit had been approved and paid months before. But while she was waiting for the actual paper proof of her permit , she faced the same pressures undocumented migrants face being underpaid. Minimum.
S6: Minimum. O menos solow minimo mejor dicho. Todavia habia llegado mi permiso de trabajo. Yo la mi permiso de trabajo ya Balaguer porque yo aqui esta mi mi mi mi. Authorization mi authorization. My embryo estoy legal todo el tipo asi por lo tiene verdad y yo.
S4: The owner of the Beverly Hills Dental Clinic used the fact that she didn't have the actual paper proof as leverage to pay her way below the California minimum wage.
S2: How much ? $11 an hour. In LA's wealthy neighborhood of Beverly Hills , which at the time. Followed California's minimum wage of $15 an hour.
S6: Cuando pero no no no entonces.
S4: And furthermore he wasn't willing to readjust the wage retroactively once she did have the proofing hand.
S6: La hora esto locura. No yo no pago. Estoy no podia Como estaba dolares la hora yo otro trabajo y yo tenia dos trabajo se trabajo y un trabajo. Una tienda sabado Domingo.
S2: With the pressure of having to make ends meet , find an apartment for her son to join them and pay for both her and her son's visa process. Chema persisted and looked for another job.
S4: She worked in a retail store on the weekends.
S6: Como lo dinero para poder hacer un departamento de trabajando siete dias de la semana. Cuando no , no.
S4: She worked seven days a week , eight hours a day for three months until.
S6: 20 cinco. Por una clinica.
S4: When she found out that a friend who was working as a nanny was getting paid 25 to $30 an hour.
S10: A b c d e f g. Happy mi Rachel. Avelar.
S4: Hermano Chema. Survival instincts kicked in and she immersed herself in children's programming.
S2: Adapt or perish for trabajar. It was a no brainer. She started hustling , digging for leads , just looking for nanny positions on Craigslist until.
S4: She hit a gold nugget. A complete lane switcher of a nugget.
S6: Going Craigslist icon a una familia anterior k l a familia high profile y q t hablo invierno on avenida para su ninos mas de un millones de Dolores al ano estos objeto.
S4: She connected with a very important high profile asset and a state manager from town.
S2: Just so you know , we will switch between the two titles to refer to this person. According to Chama , this asset manager would spend close to $1 million just in what Chama said she called kids networking and amenities.
S4: Chama explained that this asset manager would seek over qualified staff that had a similar profile to jamas.
S2: That is , people who are both academic and professional over competency , who were culturally diverse and that could speak more than one language.
S4: But who were also in transition or in complicated situations. She just wanted to help them out.
S6:
S4: The woman hired Chema on the spot as a private cook and living nanny.
S10: ASI Como sombras e tal.
S6: Dijo esto porque toot.
S10: Toot todo el.
S6: Talento a hacer un estate manager no tiene 32 no. Curso.
S10: Curso.
S2: Sharma's personal story. Charisma and aptitude captivated this estate manager , who admired Chama and saw much of herself in her. She shared with Chama that she also started as a nanny herself. She wanted Chama to follow in her footsteps and go to a number of courses , classes , etc. to eventually become an estate manager as well. In the meantime , Chama would start as her family's cook and nanny.
S6: There's a huge porque trabajar con Ella porque Como me primera carrera cocina.
S2: The pay and the hours were worlds better than her other jobs.
S4: Chama would start with a few days a week to eventually a full time position taking care of this estate's managers three kids.
S2: Cooking , cleaning and assisting with homework. Fletcher.
S6: Fletcher. Majored in todas las agency.
S2: Recognizing Chalmers potential. This estate manager trained her. She wanted Sharma to learn all the tricks.
S6: Yeah , me me me me.
S2: This mentorship marked a turning point in Sharma's journey in the United States , with this asset manager becoming a sort of fairy godmother. But one thing we've learned about karma is that her luck is like a poker hand. One round she gets dealt a really good card and is riding high about the outlook of her game , confident to make a good bet. And the next card , well , her luck vanishes.
S6: A ellos tiene una finca in Central America. Central America , says Mrs. Allen , o mas.
S4: You see , there was a problem. This estate manager and her family would spend half the year in a ranch in the middle of Central America. Anita Sharma to travel with her internationally.
S2: And Sharma's parole status barred her from exiting the U.S.. So if she left the country , she wasn't going to be able to enter back. Faced with Sharma's inability to fly internationally , the estate manager had to let her go.
S4: Mrs. Coelho their fairy tale Retail together lasted eight months.
S2: But that relationship served its purpose. Sharma and her husband were able to rent an apartment in July of 2023. Sharma's son joined them , finally bringing the family together after six months apart.
S4: And this fairy godmother would wave her want one less time.
S6: Mia conseguir un trabajo. UN trabajo.
S2: The estate manager went out of her way to make sure she connected Sharma with someone at her level.
S4: That would care and look out for her. She didn't want to leave Sharma stranded.
S11: Take care of her son.
S4: That led her to the lovely young family she is working with now. They stayed in the US year round.
S2: Finally , some lucky wind was blowing on her sails , coasting to some semblance of stability. But this is trauma we're talking about. So , of course , despite her best efforts , that Lucky Wind wouldn't last long. A looming threat presented itself on her horizon.
S12: In order to make America great and glorious again. I am tonight announcing my candidacy for president of the United States.
S13: We begin with a brand new polling showing former President Trump pulling ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris. Maybe a sign that her momentum has stalled. Cuando.
S6: Cuando. Empieza. Electoral a me pongo para.
S2: Chama began to worry when she saw Donald Trump leading his opponents in the polls. However , it was the escalation of anti-immigrant rhetoric from the then candidate and his followers that made her feel paranoid.
S12: We're going to have to have a massive deportation effort. We have them coming in from jails , from all of the places that you wouldn't believe.
S14: Trump voters ranked immigration as the second most important election issue after the economy.
S15: We're bringing in people that are terrorists. I believe there's terrorists here , known terrorists , and they're allowed to come.
S12: And I will send troops to the southern border to repel the disastrous invasion of our country.
S2: She pinned her hopes on a Biden-Harris win , but.
S16: It is now official CNN projects that Donald Trump has been elected president , defeating Vice President Kamala Harris and making a political comeback unlike any in modern American politics.
S4: Worried , she got in contact with a friend who was a paralegal , Wondering what to do next.
S6: We wanted to permit the two and two castle to a renovation to the authorization de MPO e un tps para salga del Parral.
S2: Her friend advised her to switch from parole to Temporary Protected Status , or TPS. That program is similar to parole , but available only to migrants already inside the US. Administration.
S6: Administration. El TPS. L parole. L parole. ESO. Hablando mucho en el Congreso.
S2: In her friend's mind , those with parole were more vulnerable than those with TPS.
S4: Plus , Camus's parole status was set to expire that same year in 2024. So it was in her best interest to make the switch.
S6: Made with del parole due to authorization de Amplio. Ya vemos cuando puedes pagar two two four millimetres. Pero parada porque atocha 26. Aqui en este tiempo de la chance. De la otra form a eso. Follow.
S2: With the switch to TPS , she would get more time to request the family reunification visa from inside the US.
S4: She just needed a little more time to get the paperwork done. Right ? Right.
S5: We are following some breaking news out of Washington. The Trump administration is now telling migrants from.
S17: Cuba , Haiti , Nicaragua.
S5: And Venezuela.
S17: That their legal status is being revoked. More than 500,000 migrants are now being told to self deport or face being forcibly arrested and removed from the United States.
S6: In El primero che fulminant folle parole de una.
S4: The first thing Trump did was to end parole status , and as things were looking , he was going to do the same with TPS.
S2: Parole TPS. To better understand what Chama was facing. We spoke with Ginger Jacobs , a San Diego based immigration lawyer with 25 years of experience.
S18: So parole is a status. It's a it's a legal status where somebody says , I have an emergency reason to come to the United States. And the US government looks at their situation and says , yes , we agree that you have an emergency reason to come to the United States , and we are going to let you in in the status of parolee. And when when you are admitted with the status of parolee , you usually have an order of supervision , which means you need to check in with ice because there's an understanding that parole could be terminated. So there's often a supervisory component to it. Um , people with parole can apply for work permits because the government has already acknowledged that they have an important reason to be here. So.
S2: But according to Ginger , in recent years , during the Biden administration , it was expanded to include entire classes of people , like citizens of countries who were fleeing a crisis.
S18: So , for example , there was a program under the Biden administration that we shortcut it a c , n v , and it's for , um , Cuba , Haiti , Nicaragua and Venezuela. This was a parole program that people could apply for from their home countries , or from a third country if they were a citizen of one of those four countries saying , hey , I have , um , family in the US. I think it required a component of family sponsorship. Um , I won't be a burden to like social services in the United States , but I need protection. I need to not be able to go back to my country right now , because my country is either in the midst of , you know , a brutal dictatorship or a completely chaotic situation with no government. Um , so those countries , for example , got their own parole program. Um , there was also a special parole program for Ukraine because of the war.
S2: Parole was first used in the 1950s to help Hungarian refugees fleeing a revolution. It's typically granted for a two year period with the expectation that people return home once conditions improve.
S4: On the other hand , Temporary Protected Status , or TPS , is very similar to the parole program , but it is granted to those who are already in the US.
S18: So temporary protected status is usually granted for approximately 18 months at a time , and it's up to the executive branch to decide to renew , uh , TPS for a certain country. It's done country by country , based on the circumstances in that country. So let's say , for example , if there are folks in the United States and a war breaks out in their home country. So this happened with Syria , um , where let's say there were Syrian nationals in the United States who had come on a visitor visa just for a temporary stay to visit family. And all of a sudden a war broke out back home and they couldn't return. Then they could apply for TPS to stay in the US safely and not have to go back to a war torn country. The expectation is then the US executive branch , the federal government , looks at the situation in that country. Let's say Syria , say , is there still a war ongoing ? Are people still in danger ? Is this still too messy to send people back ? And if the answer is yes , then it should be extended or if the war is over. Civil society has been restored. The civilian population is not at harm or at risk. Then the decision should be no , it shouldn't be extended.
S2: The idea is the same as parole status. If conditions are still dangerous to go back home. TPS gets renewed. If it's safe again , then it ends.
S18: Unfortunately , that's not what's happening here. That's not what we're seeing with the Trump administration.
S2: But in 2025 , under the Trump administration , according to Ginger , those renewal decisions didn't reflect the real conditions in those countries.
S18: So if you look at TPS for a country like Haiti , TPS was extended to Haiti because it the situation , the political situation in civil society had devolved to the point that there was essentially no government and the civilian population was not safe at all. The Trump administration looked at Haiti and said , nope , we're canceling TPS. That doesn't seem to be based on actual conditions in Haiti , because if we look at country conditions , things are still really unsafe for the civilian population. So the US government should not be making a decision that it's okay to return a large group of people to a country where where they will be in danger.
S4: Earlier this year , the Department of Homeland Security terminated the parole program for Venezuelans and other Latin American countries.
S2: The legality of that decision went all the way to the Supreme Court , which sided with the Department of Homeland Security and allowed for it to proceed with its plans to terminate the program.
S4: Shortly after , the Trump administration also moved to end temporary protected status for Venezuelans.
S2: Recently , the Secretary of Homeland Security , Kristi Noem , announced that , quote , conditions in Venezuela no longer meet the TPS statutory requirements , effectively ending the program for Venezuelans.
S4: In the months while these podcast episodes were being produced , a court battle ensued between the federal government and the courts.
S2: The federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued an injunction blocking Trump's executive order to terminate TPS , and the Trump administration pushed it to the Supreme Court.
S4: At the time of recording this episode , news dropped.
S19: The justices issued an emergency order that lasts as long as the court case continues. That order puts a lower court ruling that found the administration had wrongly ended TPS on hold. This is the second time the Supreme Court has made such a move.
S2: The Supreme Court placed a hold on the Ninth Circuit's ruling , pausing the program and virtually ending the possibility of application or renewal.
S4: With both parole and TPS gone. Karma is stranded in a legal limbo.
S2: Essentially undocumented , made illegal by decree. Even though she followed every rule and waited eight years to do things the legal way.
S20: The may gay scientist cuando.
S6: A vulnerability that.
S4: Says she feels vulnerable.
S6: Como una casita mas de lo mismo a trump , sino es Como es Como el sistema sa systematic.
S4: Like she's been slapped in the face by the systems that fail to see her as a human.
S2: Both in Venezuela and now here.
S6: Entonces el simply. Bestie to de to alma or torment to conciencia pueda correr viejo eso two para Lisa.
S4: The thought of being separated from her son again paralyzes her. Rocks her to her core. Qamar is frustrated and anxious about what the courts may decide.
S6: Trump firma otra y yo después de una armada y. Yo perdido cuando deja saber Valencia y cuando ya y también ahorita en base al no no ninguna decision era porque al manana una decision era otra.
S2: In this climate Chama can't possibly make any sort of significant or important life decisions.
S4: She just wants the US to make up its mind with the hope that she and her family can stay together. You're listening. To port of entry.
S2: On the drive to the nearest. In and out. Julian Sharma continued their conversation.
S4: On the side of the road to a light. Police cars were making a traffic stop. Blue and red patrol lights lit up the whole street.
S2: Sharma visibly tensed and held her breath until they passed the two patrols , observing her reaction. Our producer was prompted to ask her how she has managed to stay safe amid all the Ice raids sweeping through LA.
S6: Aqui a. Horrible look at yo no tratado de Los lugares.
S4:
S2: Latino neighborhoods , for example.
S21: The Gaspar.
S6: Por Los Lobos Blanco. Santa Monica , Beverly Hills.
S2: She spends her time in predominantly white spaces , and she often modulates her Spanish in certain environments to avoid drawing unwanted attention. Chama is constantly looking over her shoulder , limiting where she goes , what she says , even how she says it. She feels trapped , unable to be herself , and live her life.
S4: A feeling all too familiar to her and the reason why she left Venezuela.
S2: This time , however , she's in a gilded cage.
S4: After dinner , they headed back to the house where Chama works.
S2: Adjusting her language. Staying in predominantly white spaces. Avoiding public life. Those are her worries today.
S4: But when she first moved to L.A. in January of 2023.
S2: When her legal status was still stable.
S4: The source of her anxiety was being away from her then 16 year old son , while she and her husband worked on building a home for him.
S2: Having to leave her son in Tijuana still haunts her now in 2025 , that her legal status has been stripped away. She is tormented by the possibility of another separation , and the fear of being detained and deported constantly looms in the back of her head. Chama is confused as to what to do next. It took her eight years to find stability , and she doesn't want to wait another eight by starting over again somewhere else. She's waiting for the dust to settle. Lingering in the shadows. Forced to curb her bright tropical self. For this special report , we set out to find out how doing it the legal way translates into practice. The answer is not that simple and the finish line keeps moving depending on who's in power.
S4: But in the conversation , we risk losing sight of the human being stuck in the middle.
S2: In our discussions with trauma , we found a strong , resilient woman who just wants to be safe with her family.
S4: And if she's forced to go back to Venezuela , what would she be returning to.
S22: After blowing up this boat in the southern Caribbean ? Tonight , the white House is turning up the heat on Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro , though President Trump denies he wants regime change.
S2: The relationship between the US and Venezuela has continued to deteriorate with escalating tension , rhetoric and action. As of mid-October , the US has sent several Navy warships and a few thousand troops to the southern Caribbean , what officials are calling an anti-narcotics mission. American fighter jets have also been deployed to nearby bases , some claiming they have flown close to Venezuelan airspace , though there's no public evidence they've entered Venezuelan boundaries in recent weeks. The US military has carried out multiple strikes on small boats near Venezuelan waters , killing people , it says , or drug traffickers. Human rights groups and legal experts are questioning those attacks , not just for the lack of transparency , but for what they might signal a widening use of force in an already volatile region.
S23: Tensions in the Caribbean have reached a dangerous new level , as Venezuela's president takes one of the most drastic measures of his tenure. In a solemn televised address , President Nicolas Maduro declared that he had signed a decree granting himself sweeping emergency security powers in the event of a US military incursion into his country.
S2: Experts warn about tensions rising to a boiling point where the world might see a conflict erupt. And that's what's got Schama on edge.
S6: In La Costa. Medina , Medina.
S2: The anguish she feels , it cracks her voice and has her on the verge of tears as she worries about the threat it poses to her country and to her loved ones who remain behind like her parents.
S6: Puede pasar nosotros ahora la proxima Syria o la proxima Gaza.
S2: She's worried that any conflict between the two countries could decimate Venezuela and turn it into the next Syria or Gaza , especially as Venezuelan migrants are increasingly depicted as the new terrorists.
S4: The new terrorists that speak Spanish and dance reggaeton. Has been dealt a bad hand.
S2: A dictatorship.
S4: A complicated immigration status.
S2: Uprooted and separated family.
S4: Inconsistent support from her spouse.
S2: And just bad luck.
S4: Her biggest mistake was being born in the wrong place at the wrong time.
S2:
S4: This Port of Entry episode was written and produced by Julio Cesar Ortiz Franco.
S2: Brennan Truffaut is technical producer and Adrian Villalobos is our sound designer.
S4: This episode was edited by Elma Gonzalez , Lima Brandao and Chrissy Nguyen. Lisa J. Morissette is director of audio programming and operations.
S2: Soy Alan Lilienthal.
S4: Yo soy Natalia Gonzalez.
S24: Nos vemos. Pronto.
