Mexican-American Migrants Return to Mexico Through 'Self-Deportation' Under Trump Policies

Hundreds of thousands of Latinos have reportedly left the United States voluntarily with one-way tickets since the beginning of Donald Trump's second term, according to U.S. government statistics. Immigration experts view these official numbers with skepticism. Abel Ortiz, who arrived in Los Angeles as a young child with his Mexican parents, exemplifies this trend. In August 2025, at age 38, he packed two suitcases with clothing and important photographs before leaving what he had considered his home. Until Trump declared people like him public enemy number one, Ortiz believed himself to be thoroughly American. His departure transformed him into a statistic within a campaign targeting those labeled as 'illegal immigrants' due to lacking valid documentation. Now residing in Mexico City, he experiences both positive energy and grief for his former life. The sudden difficulty of daily existence prompted his exit.