American Families Share Devastating Stories of Separation and Exile Under U.S. Immigration Policies

A new report from American Families United (AFU) is bringing attention to the emotional, financial, and medical hardship facing U.S. citizens married to immigrants — hardship described in painful detail by families living through it.

According to AFU’s survey of 227 mixed-status couples, 80% of U.S. spouses live in fear of being separated from their partner, while some have already been forced apart or pushed into exile abroad to keep their families together. Many say the system gives them “no path” to remain united in the country they call home.

Behind these findings are stories of Americans whose lives have been upended.

A U.S. Citizen Whose Husband Was Detained by ICE With No Criminal Record

One woman shared that her husband was detained by ICE despite having no criminal history. She described the toll on her health, saying her heart “was so broken, both medically and metaphorically.”

While caring for their children alone, she also faced serious medical obstacles — including her own heart condition and her son’s epileptic seizures — conditions that were difficult or impossible to treat after the family was forced to leave the United States.

“I needed medical care that was not accessible in Brazil,” she explained, describing how exile worsened both her medical needs and her son’s. She ultimately had to return to the U.S. without her husband, despite having worked as a public servant for 18 years.

A Family Forced to Relocate to Brazil to Stay Together

Another U.S. citizen said she “lost everything” in the process of trying to keep her family intact. Because of her husband’s immigration case, the family moved to Brazil so they could remain together.

But the move created new hardships — limited medical care, financial strain, and the inability to access treatments she and her son needed. She emphasized that the decision was not one she ever imagined making, but felt she had “no choice” if her family was to stay united.

A Survivor of Abuse Caring for Multiple Children Alone

One speaker — a survivor of abuse in a previous marriage — said she and her current husband had legally adopted four children together. After her husband’s deportation, she was left caring for all the children alone.

She explained that she was also taking in her sister’s four children, carrying the responsibility of two families without the support of her partner. Despite the overwhelming burden, she said she would “do it over and over again,” making clear the love and commitment driving her fight to keep her family together.

Americans Providing Care While Living in Fear

Another participant shared that she and her undocumented spouse regularly take a relative to monthly chemotherapy appointments — yet still live with constant fear that her spouse could be taken away at any moment.

These experiences reflect what AFU calls a “largely invisible crisis” affecting hundreds of thousands of American families.

‘My family’s separation was not inevitable — it was a policy choice.’

In the report, Amanda Ribeiro, a U.S. citizen, nurse, and mother, said her family was torn apart even though they followed every legal step available.

“My family’s separation was not inevitable — it was a policy choice,” she said. “And no one benefits from American children growing up without their father.”

These families are doing everything right, and still, they are punished by a system that refuses to recognize their marriages and protect their families. As people of faith, these stories are a reminder that defending family unity is not only a matter of policy, but a moral and spiritual responsibility. In these times, we are called to stand with our immigrant brothers and sisters in Christ — and with our fellow U.S. citizens fighting to keep their families whole — because no family deserves to live in fear or be torn apart.