Heidy Sánchez, a mother originally from Cuba, received notice about her upcoming deportation to Cuba. This surprising announcement came while she was on her required check-in appointment with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Tampa. This sudden change of plans has put her 17-month-old daughter in a precarious position. That sick child, who is still breastfeeding, is now in the care of her lawyer while her mother is deported from the United States.
Sánchez’s case began when she showed up for her check-in appointment, escorted by her husband, Carlos Valle, a U.S. citizen. Yet, Valle was not allowed to follow through the door to the room that Sánchez was being questioned by ICE agents. The couple was already entangled in the complexities of immigration enforcement, which has drawn significant criticism under the Trump administration for separating U.S. citizen children from their parents during deportation proceedings.
At the end of the interview, they informed Sánchez that her daughter would need to remain in the United States. She can travel to see her in Cuba. Sánchez could hardly believe the directive. She was forced to leave her baby with no other option. Instead, she had to hand over her daughter to a lawyer who could ensure the child’s safety and care during her mother’s absence.
The young child’s severe health complications complicate this bitter-sweet story. For Sánchez, the pain of being away from her daughter runs deep. As she is still breastfeeding, the impact of this situation has been especially hard on her. Her attorney, Claudia Cañizares, attempted to intervene and prevent the deportation but encountered significant obstacles from authorities, who provided vague responses and “the runaround” during the legal proceedings.
Fortunately, Florida Democratic Congresswoman Kathy Castor is doing her part to fix this lousy reality. She’s working day and night to lobby the administration into backing Sánchez. Castor’s testimony shed light on the emotional and logistical burdens that thousands of families have endured due to abusive immigration policies. He stressed the extreme urgency of maintaining family unity in these tumultuous days.
Heidy Sánchez is about to be deported to Cuba. In the meantime, though, her daughter will remain in the U.S. The case has ignited debate around harmful immigration policies that target family units, particularly families with U.S. citizen children. The separation of families during deportation proceedings continues to raise ethical questions about the treatment of individuals navigating an already complex immigration system.