(Cleveland) - A handful of protesters gathered at Cleveland Hopkins Airport on Tuesday morning as an undocumented immigrant from Huron County said goodbye to his wife and children, and got on board a flight. The eventual destination for Jesus Lara Lopez was Mexico City.
Lara was deported Tuesday morning in accordance with a government decision that he could no longer stay in the United States. The Trump administration recently ordered the deportation of thousands of people who are in the U.S. illegally.
Lara has been in the U.S. without the proper paperwork or documentation for the past 17 years. After he was flagged during a routine traffic stop nine years ago, he has been trying to convince the U.S. Governement to let him stay in the U.S. Petitions in support of him were collected and turned over to members of Congress.
Supporters of Lara say he's a taxpayer (payroll taxes) and has just bought a house. They say without his income, his wife and children - children who are American citizens - may have their house foreclosed.
More than 41,000 people who are believed to be in the country illegally have been rounded up as part of the White House's decision. The ICE (Immigrations and Customs Enforcement) website says no class of individuals will be exempt from removal, if they are in the country illegally.
(Photo courtesy WKYC-TV)