Deportation of Reporter Mario Guevara's Is "Attack on Free Speech and Journalism"

The Spanish-language journalist Mario Guevara may be deported to El Salvador as soon as today despite holding work authorization in the United States and never having been charged with a crime. Guevara, who founded the outlet MG News, where he received awards for his coverage on immigration, has lived in the United States for nearly 20 years. He was arrested and jailed in June for live-streaming an anti-Trump "No Kings" demonstration near Atlanta.

"Mario's case is really the tip of the spear, and today's deportation is deeply troubling," says lawyer Nora Benavidez. "It is because of his journalistic work that they targeted him. They really do not want what he's doing to expose ICE." Benavidez also responds to the attempted deportations of pro-Palestine immigrant students on U.S. college campuses. "It really mirrors the way that Mario has also been targeted because the government, very similarly, simply went after him for his speech," she says.