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By Anita Isaacs
Ms. Isaacs is a professor of political science at Haverford College. Her research focuses on the reintegration of return migrants in Mexico and Central America.
Once, I met a man in a rural community outside Guatemala City who had worked as a sushi chef in the United States, where he learned to speak English and even a bit of Japanese. After being arrested during a workplace raid and deported, he dreamed of opening his own restaurant in Guatemala. But his confidence had run up against a hard reality: Back home, there was no clear path to turn his newfound skills into a living. Instead, he was struggling to find work.
As a researcher of returnees to Mexico and Central America, I’ve talked to countless migrants who felt adrift once they got back home. They are often met with suspicion. Employers hesitate to hire them. Communities treat them as outsiders. Governments offer little support. For many struggling families, they represent one more mouth to feed. Gangs target them for extortion or abduction.
