Maria Pires felt hopeful and free when she was adopted from a Sao Paulo orphanage at the age of 11, believing her new life would be full of possibilities. However, her adoptive father subjected her to years of horrific abuse, leading to a tumultuous teenage life marred by violence and criminality.
Despite her troubled past, Pires was able to start anew upon release from prison, learning to manage her anger while working in construction and checking in annually with immigration authorities. However, her life took a drastic turn in 2023 when, during a routine immigration check-in, she was detained due to strict immigration policies enforced during President Trump's administration.
Following her deportation to Brazil, Pires found herself in a shelter, struggling to adapt and communicate in her mother tongue, Portuguese. She faces the challenge of rebuilding her life from scratch, grappled with her identity, and the deep void left by her separation from the U.S.
With limited resources and a yearning to reconnect with her birth family, Maria’s story underscores the complexities of her life experiences that go beyond simple narratives of crime or deportation, revealing the broader implications of immigration policy on individuals with tragic histories.
