Darling Vargas Picado, 43, and her two kids Eliezer Josue Vargas Picado, 15, and Aurora Tamara Velasquez Vargas, 10, came together from Matagalpa, Nicaragua and were given food and shelter at Our Lady of Purification Church in Dona Ana, New Mexico the day they were released from ICE. They traveled through Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico, to get to the border of Mexico – United States, to seek asylum.
Back home, she owned a small ‘pulperia’ or small store selling groceries and general food items. Up until 2018 when the protests against President Daniel Ortega began, everything was going well for her and her business, but after this began the difficulties and the fears. All businesses began to shut down due to the war against the people and the government, and she as well had to close her business.
The president of Nicaragua began to decrease social security benefits to the elderly, “The students stood up to the government and began a war in favor of the elderly. Practically a civil war because the students were defending their people. That’s when the war began between the people and the government on April 18, 2019.” she said describing the political situation in her country.
Darling would take her daughter to school every day, where she had to pass a barricade, and she would provide food and money to her nephew, whom was part of the protest against the government. Her nephew, eventually fled the country with his family, in fear of their lives. “They (the government) began to search for him and couldn’t find him, they looked for his siblings, his children, his mother, but he had already migrated to another country, so they began to look for his family members, in this came ‘me’, because they saw me giving him food and money while he was barricaded,” she described the situation and her decision in leaving her country.
A lot of dead bodies of young people were found during this time, and many people were murdered in cause of this protest. “Demonstrators of these marches, would get arrested, beaten, and then they would be released from jail and let go, without telling them why they had been detained, one would just relate the political situation.” she said. “These were horrible crimes, they would do against the people who were being framed for supporting their own people, against a dictator who wants to have power and control over the country, the people, and everything else,”
Darling fears of a deportation and an arrest, because, like many migrants that have been deported to her country, in fact, have gone straight to jail for fleeing the country and migrating to the United States. “What we want is to be safe, and then return to our country when the political situation gets better.” she said. Her desire is to maintain her location a secret for fear of prosecution by her government.
Darling Vargas Picado, 43, y sus dos hijos, Eliezer Josué Vargas Picado, 15, y Aurora Tamara Velásquez Vargas, 10, vienen juntos desde Matagalpa, Nicaragua, y fueron ofrecidos albergue y alimento en la parroquia de Nuestra Señora de la Purificación en Doña Ana, Nuevo México, el día que fueron liberados por ICE. Ellos tuvieron que viajar por Honduras, Guatemala, y México para llegar a la frontera de Estados Unidos – México a pedir asilo.
En su país de origen, ella era dueña de una “pulpería” o en otras palabras un súper mercado donde se venden productos de alimento. Todo estaba bien con su negocio, hasta que comenzaron las marchas en contra del Presidente Daniel Ortega, y después empezaron las dificultades y los miedos. Los negocias comenzaron a cerrar a causa de la polémica entre la población y el gobierno y ella también tuvo que cerrar su negocio.
El Presidente de Nicaragua empezó a quitarle los beneficios de seguro a los ancianos, “Los estudiantes se levantan en contra del gobierno y empieza la guerra a favor de los ancianos. Prácticamente una guerra civil porque los jóvenes los empiezan a defender. Es cuando comienza el 18 de abril de 2018 la pelea contra la población y el gobierno,” dijo ella explicando la situación política en su país.
Darling llevaba a su hija al colegio todos los días, donde pasaba por un trance, donde le daba alimento y dinero a su sobrino que participaba en las marchas encontrar del gobierno. Su sobrino tuvo que huir de su país con su familia, porque su vida corría peligro. “A él lo comenzaron a buscar (el gobierno) y no lo encontraban, buscaron a sus hermanos, a sus hijos, y a su mamá, pero él ya había migrado a otro país, y comenzaron a buscar a sus familiares, en este caso a mí, porque miraron que yo le llevaba comida y dinero cuando pasaba por el trance,” dijo ella explicando la situación y su decisión en salir de su país.
Empezaron a encontrar jóvenes muertos y mucha gente fue asesinada por causa de esta protesta. “A los participantes de las marchas se los llevaban detenidos, los golpeaban, y después los echaban de la cárcel y los dejaban ir sin decirles nada, uno solo relacionaba la situación política,” dijo ella. “Eran crímenes horribles que se hacían en contra de la gente que se inculpaba por apoyar a la gente de su pueblo, en contra de un dictador que quiere tener el poder y el control sobre el país, las personas y todo lo demás.”
Darling tiene miedo de poder ser deportada y detenida, así como mucho migrantes que han sido deportados a su país y han ido directo a la cárcel por huir de su país y emigrar a los Estados Unidos. “Nosotros lo que queremos es estar seguros, y ya después regresar cuando mejore la situación política en nuestro país.” dijo ella. Ella desea mantener su ubicación en secreto por miedo a persecución de su gobierno.
The Faces of Immigration Project is a 40 Day photo journal series used to highlight the stories of all Immigrants. The project is meant to shed light on some of the many reasons people have for immigrating to the U.S. Statements and stories have been edited for content, clarity, and brevity and may not reflect the entirety of an Immigrant’s reasons for immigrating to the United States.
By Paul Ratje