MARIO GUEVARA, an influential community journalist who has served the Atlanta area for nearly 20 years, was deported to El Salvador last Friday. He had already spent 100 days in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody prior to his deportation. His detainment has sparked outcry as another example of a specific and growing threat to journalists and an overall decline in media freedoms in the United States.
Guevara had fled El Salvador in 2004 from persecution by left-wing militias, searching for a home and opportunities in the U.S. He has survived under an “administrative closure” of deportation orders for the majority of his over three decades in the country. Throughout that time, he has maintained a legal work authorization. He is a proud father of two children, one of whom, Katherine Guevara, is a citizen of the United States.
He was arrested in June streaming live at the “No Kings Day” protests. The minor charges for protesting him were soon dropped. It was this unfortunate incident that caused immigration officials to reopen Guevara’s deportation case. In fact, his imprisonment quickly grew to be one of the longest for any reporter arrested due to their work in the history of the U.S.
Guevara maintained a popular Facebook page, boasting over 1 million followers who tuned in to watch his livestreams of protests. Though his popularity was booming, sponsorships funding him were put on hold while he was in jail. Throughout his time in the detention center located in Folkston, Georgia, he kept in touch with family and legal representatives through regular phone calls.
Katherine Guevara described how her dad had been stressed and waiting to hear if he would get deported.
“I mean, I’m surviving, but it’s been a really difficult time,” – Katherine Guevara
Yet in the early hours of Friday morning, immigration officials placed Guevara on a flight to El Salvador. This move has drawn sharp fire from many foundations and other groups that support press freedom.
It is a very alarming trend.” Katherine Jacobsen, U.S., Canada and Caribbean program coordinator for CPJ, stressed Guevara’s case. She cautioned that it is indicative of more disturbing trends affecting journalists everywhere in the U.S.
“This is the latest in a series of measures from this administration that really cut at the core of media freedoms,” – Katherine Jacobsen
Jacobsen stressed that the government’s case for detaining Guevara was that his livestreaming work endangered police officers. This tangled logic does not just create a dangerous precedent.
“Throughout the course of Guevara’s time in custody, the government put forward arguments saying that he was being held because his livestreaming activity as a reporter posed a danger to law enforcement activity,” – Katherine Jacobsen
The stakes of Guevara’s case go far beyond his own future. It’s emblematic of a wider trend, where journalists are increasingly intimidated and repressed simply for doing their jobs.
“These are the kind of tactics that we see frequently in other countries overseas, and I think it’s time for Americans to realize that these kind of bureaucratic methods of going after journalists and civil society actors are being used here,” – Katherine Jacobsen
Guevara’s experience strikes a chord in the backdrop of these current and ongoing conversations regarding media freedoms here in the U.S. The voices demanding accountability are getting stronger. Today, reporters and activists are calling for more stringent protections so that journalists can pursue the truth without fear of persecution or deportation.