The Fight To Stay: Longtime U.S. Residents Face Deportation

 

What was supposed to be a joyous time for Georgia barber Rodney Taylor after his recent engagement turned into a nightmare when Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents showed up at his doorstep and arrested him—threatening to deport him to Liberia, a country he left as a toddler.

The reason ICE cited for his planned deportation: a felony burglary conviction that he pleaded guilty to at 19 years old and was later pardoned for in 2010, his attorney stated. Taylor is currently detained at the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia.

Taylor, who originally came to the U.S. for medical treatment, had been out of status and waiting for his green card application to be approved, his attorney explained.

“I feel like an American. This is all I knew. I didn’t even know I was an immigrant until I was 17 years old,” Taylor said from inside the detention center. “Going back to Liberia is like going back to a foreign country.”

Taylor, a double amputee, now struggles to receive adequate medical care while in custody. ICE has listed him as being in detention but has not provided further details.

Amid the Trump administration’s intensified immigration enforcement, many longtime U.S. residents like Taylor—who hold visas, work permits, or green cards—are facing deportation. Despite having spent decades building lives, raising children, and contributing to their communities, they now face the possibility of leaving everything behind.

A Newly Engaged Barber Who Gives Back

Taylor had been planning a health fair to provide free screenings, resources, and haircuts to undocumented immigrants in his community. Flyers were already posted at his barber shop in Snellville, Georgia.

Then, on January 15, as his fiancée, Mildred Pierre, was pulling out of their driveway to take the kids to school, ICE agents surrounded the home and detained Taylor.

“I was scared, terrified, but we were surprised and very shocked,” Pierre said.

Days earlier, Taylor had proposed to Pierre at her 40th birthday party. They were still celebrating their engagement when their lives took a drastic turn.

“Mommy, I miss daddy,” Pierre’s young daughter, who was becoming Taylor’s stepdaughter, told her after his detention.

Born in Liberia with severe disabilities, Taylor was brought to the U.S. as a toddler for treatment. He later applied for a green card through his U.S. citizen son.

Despite being pardoned for a burglary he committed as a teenager, he still faces deportation.

“How can the federal government not forgive me?” Taylor asked. “That’s what I don’t understand.”

Taylor has dedicated his life to helping others, regularly volunteering and providing free haircuts at community events. One of his clients vowed not to cut his hair until Taylor is released, calling his barber chair “free therapy.”

At the Stewart Detention Center, Taylor says he is unable to get necessary accommodations. Charging his prosthetics for eight hours daily has been difficult, and when they broke, he was initially given only tape to fix them. Though provided with a wheelchair, he struggles to use it due to missing fingers.

“The facility cannot accommodate me at all,” he said. “So I’ve been deteriorating in here.”

His attorney hopes to secure his release on bond at an upcoming hearing.

Meanwhile, Pierre held the health fair on his behalf, providing medical services to over 100 people.

“Although he’s detained, he feels like the community still needs to be served,” Pierre said.

A Caretaker with a Baby on the Way

For the past four years, Virginia resident Alfredo Orellana has been a caretaker for a man with severe autism, according to the man’s mother, Lena Ferris.

“He is phenomenal at helping to take care of people who have special needs,” Ferris said.

Orellana, a green card holder married to a U.S. citizen, was detained returning from a vacation in El Salvador the day after President Donald Trump’s second inauguration. His wife, now six months pregnant, has been left to navigate the crisis alone.

Born in Argentina, Orellana has lived in the U.S. since he was four years old. He now faces deportation due to a 2017 conviction for obtaining less than $200 by false pretenses.

“Lots of young American kids make mistakes, but he gets punished in a way that they don’t,” Ferris said.

With a baby on the way, Orellana and his wife had just bought a house and were planning a baby shower. Now, he’s detained at the El Valle Detention Center in Raymondville, Texas—over 1,000 miles from home.

A final hearing in his case is scheduled for April 25 in Virginia. His attorney remains hopeful for a positive outcome.

A Lab Technician in the U.S. for 50 Years

Green card holder Lewelyn Dixon’s detention at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport followed an extensive search of her luggage by Customs and Border Protection the previous year, her family said.

In 2024, a forgotten ham sandwich in her bag triggered a prolonged search and warnings that her bags would be checked whenever she returned from international trips. A year later, after another search and a four-hour questioning session, she was detained.

Two days later, her family learned that the University of Washington lab technician was in ICE custody.

The 64-year-old has lived in the U.S. for over 50 years.

“It didn’t even cross my mind that someone who is documented is at risk,” her niece Melania Madriaga said. “Especially when she’s been in a country a long time.”

Dixon was detained due to a 2001 embezzlement conviction that her family was unaware of until her arrest. Her attorney, Ben Osorio, explained that despite her long-term residence, employment, and family ties, the current administration’s focus on “maximum enforcement” makes it difficult to fight her deportation.

During her detention, Dixon has been assisting fellow detainees with limited English proficiency by helping them understand legal documents.

“She helps others, even when she’s struggling herself,” Madriaga said.

A parole request has been filed, and her court date is set for July 17. Osorio hopes that her contributions to society will outweigh her past conviction.

“It’s been nearly a month since her detention, but my aunt is strong,” Madriaga said. “She doesn’t want us to worry, so she puts on a brave front.”

A Growing Pattern of Deportations

Legal experts argue that recent ICE actions disproportionately target lawful residents with minor past offenses. Immigration attorney Charles Kuck attributes this to the Trump administration’s focus on “easy cases,” where digital databases flag old convictions regardless of their severity or context.

“A lot of these people are just falling into their lap at airports,” Kuck said. “It’s easy, and it helps them meet quotas.”

For Taylor, Orellana, and Dixon, the fight to stay in the U.S. is ongoing. Their families and communities continue to advocate for their release, hoping that their decades of contributions will be taken into account.

Until then, their futures remain uncertain.