[IMPORTANT: Make this 4 times longer with much more detail]
Photo by Giuseppe Di Maria : https://www.pexels.com/photo/protesters-holding-placards-12615200/ By Sofía Aguilar February 27, 2025 – 12:12 In the past few weeks since President Donald Trump was sworn into office on January 20th, transgender rights have been challenged and oppressed at the federal level. On the day of his inauguration, Trump signed an executive order that stated his administration would only recognize male and female genders. As a result, the State Department eliminated the X gender option on passports and will no longer allow transgender, intersex, and nonbinary people to update their gender marker. On February 5th, he signed another executive order banning trans girls and women from competing in women’s sports, which is currently facing legal challenges . He’s also rolled back on legal pathways for migrants to attain citizenship, such as shutting down the CBP One App . As a result, trans Latinxs across the country fearing for their lives and worried for their futures. One such person is Estrella Santos-Zacaría, a trans immigrant from Guatemala who is currently undergoing legal battles to stay in the U.S. and stop her deportation back to her home country. Currently living in Los Angeles, she is navigating the court system at multiple levels, from immigration court to the U.S. Supreme Court , to remain in the country, NBC reported. “I told my lawyer: ‘You know what I think most? I’d rather die than go back there. I don’t want to leave,” she said in an interview with Noticias Telemundo . “In the place where I lived, they don’t accept me.” Over the years, Santos-Zacaría has testified about the danger she faces if she returns home. When she was about 12 years old, she was abused and raped by a neighbor in her town, who threatened to kill her and her family if she spoke up. Other townspeople also promised to kill her, all because of her trans gender identity and queer sexuality. Fearing for her safety, she fled from Guatemala to Mexico and then to the U.S., but was deported in 2008. In 2018, she returned to the U.S., saying she’d been raped and assaulted by a gang in Mexico. Now 36, she has been spending the last few years of her life being bounced around the court system and arguing for protection against the anti-LGBTQIA+ persecution she faces back home. Currently, Guatemala is a danger zone for many LGBTQIA+ communities. In 2023, 39 LGBTQIA+ people were murdered, a 34.5 percent increase from the previous year, according to Sin Violencia LGBTI . Though she’s already been deported once and thus unable to apply for asylum, she’s already had several legal wins, including when the Supreme Court unanimously ruled to give her more time to argue her case. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit also ruled that Santos-Zacaría can continue to challenge her deportation order. Most recently, she’s applied for protection and suspension of deportation under the Convention Against Torture, aligned with the many acts of violence she’s faced throughout her life. Stay connected! Subscribe now and get the latest on culture, empowerment, and more. SIGN ME UP! This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and Google Privacy Policy and the Terms of Service . Thank You! You are already subscribed to our newsletter However, it’s not only Guatemala that Santos-Zacaría fears being deported back to. Many “third countries” have announced their intentions to accept migrants of any nationality being deported from the U.S., including El Salvador . That presents a problem for many trans people whose level of safety might not be better than in their home country, and in many cases, could even be worse. This means that Santos-Zacaría could be deported to El Salvador or any country they choose, even if their anti-LGBTQIA+ policies would mean persecution or death. For now, she works in a Mexican restaurant and has a strong support network of family members around her as she continues to fight against the biased and convoluted legal system. Despite everything, she has hope for her continued life in the U.S. “When I win the case, I will have a party to be happy again,” she told Noticias Telemundo. “I think I will be born again.” Santos-Zacaría’s legal case remains ongoing. 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