Ashley DeAzevedo
@afuashley.bsky.social
Executive Director of AmericanFamiliesUnited.org. Jersey girl. Blessed mom and devoted wife. Proud Catholic. ✝️ Small business owner. Believer in the sacred bond of family and the power of everyday Americans to create extraordinary change. 🇺🇸
Pinned
Ashley DeAzevedo
@afuashley.bsky.social
· Sep 17
Hi, Bluesky! My name is Ashley DeAzevedo & I'm the Director of American Families United.
This is my first post 🎉 and I’m excited to connect with everyone here.
I'm from New Jersey. I'm a mom, wife, proud Catholic, small business owner, and I haven't given up hope in the promise of America.
This is my first post 🎉 and I’m excited to connect with everyone here.
I'm from New Jersey. I'm a mom, wife, proud Catholic, small business owner, and I haven't given up hope in the promise of America.
Melissa Tran, a Maryland mother of two, was deported to Vietnam this week. She leaves behind U.S.-born children who now have to grow up without her. This is what family separation looks like in practice. @cbsnews.com
Read: www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/ne...
Read: www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/ne...
Maryland mother shares message after her deportation to Vietnam: "My heart aches"
Melissa Tran shared a message with her community a week after the Department of Homeland Security deported the Hagerstown mother of four to Vietnam, a country she left as a child.
www.cbsnews.com
November 27, 2025 at 1:30 AM
Melissa Tran, a Maryland mother of two, was deported to Vietnam this week. She leaves behind U.S.-born children who now have to grow up without her. This is what family separation looks like in practice. @cbsnews.com
Read: www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/ne...
Read: www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/ne...
South Carolina is reporting a series of ICE raids targeting neighborhoods and workplaces. Families are scared and unsure who’s next. This is the real impact of large-scale enforcement.
Read: www.rawstory.com/ice-raids-26...
Read: www.rawstory.com/ice-raids-26...
'They're using kids as bait': Trump's ICE ships record number of kids to federal shelters
ICE Sent 600 Immigrant Kids to Detention in Federal Shelters This Year. It’s a New Record.It was Friday, June 6, and the rent was due. As soon as she finished an errand, Imelda Carreto planned on…
www.rawstory.com
November 26, 2025 at 11:45 AM
South Carolina is reporting a series of ICE raids targeting neighborhoods and workplaces. Families are scared and unsure who’s next. This is the real impact of large-scale enforcement.
Read: www.rawstory.com/ice-raids-26...
Read: www.rawstory.com/ice-raids-26...
Two brothers in Virginia were finally released from ICE custody after weeks that tore their family apart. Their story shows how easily everyday life can turn into detention — and how critical community support is.
Read: www.pilotonline.com/2025/11/11/i...
Read: www.pilotonline.com/2025/11/11/i...
ICE ordered to release brothers with special status from Virginia detention facility
Two brothers with a special immigration status for abused, abandoned or neglected unaccompanied minors must be released from a Virginia ICE detention facility, a judge has ruled.
www.pilotonline.com
November 26, 2025 at 1:02 AM
Two brothers in Virginia were finally released from ICE custody after weeks that tore their family apart. Their story shows how easily everyday life can turn into detention — and how critical community support is.
Read: www.pilotonline.com/2025/11/11/i...
Read: www.pilotonline.com/2025/11/11/i...
ICE arrested a daycare worker in Chicago as parents arrived with their kids. The fear this creates in mixed-status communities is the point, not the byproduct.
Read more: www.wfaa.com/article/synd...
Read more: www.wfaa.com/article/synd...
Chicago day care worker detained by immigration agents at drop-off time for children
Witnesses say a Chicago day care employee was detained at work during a drop-off time for children, reflecting the Trump administration’s increasingly aggressive...
www.wfaa.com
November 25, 2025 at 9:10 AM
ICE arrested a daycare worker in Chicago as parents arrived with their kids. The fear this creates in mixed-status communities is the point, not the byproduct.
Read more: www.wfaa.com/article/synd...
Read more: www.wfaa.com/article/synd...
An Alabama mom is now in ICE detention after a simple traffic stop. No violent record, but her kids are spiraling and the system won’t bend. Cases like this aren’t rare, they’re the architecture of U.S. enforcement.
Read more: www.al.com/news/2025/11...
Read more: www.al.com/news/2025/11...
Family ‘spiraling’ after Alabama mother detained by ICE: ‘She got caught in an unforgiving system’
According to her family, Sonia Parris has lived in the U.S. since she was two months old.
www.al.com
November 25, 2025 at 9:10 AM
An Alabama mom is now in ICE detention after a simple traffic stop. No violent record, but her kids are spiraling and the system won’t bend. Cases like this aren’t rare, they’re the architecture of U.S. enforcement.
Read more: www.al.com/news/2025/11...
Read more: www.al.com/news/2025/11...
More families are facing potential deportation and separation, even after years of living in the U.S. Here's another story that illustrates what lots of families are going through across the country right now.
Family faces potential deportation and separation after over a decade in the U.S.
More than 2 million people have been removed or have self deported since President Donald Trump took office, according to the White House. NBC News’ Morgan Radford spoke with one family hoping to stay...
www.nbcnews.com
November 24, 2025 at 3:04 PM
More families are facing potential deportation and separation, even after years of living in the U.S. Here's another story that illustrates what lots of families are going through across the country right now.
After years of being ignored, overlooked, and misunderstood, Americans are starting to understand what my members in mixed-status marriages are going through. Jenni Rivera's nuanced and heartbreaking story was featured on This American Life this week, a milestone for our organization & our movement.
November 19, 2025 at 3:29 PM
After years of being ignored, overlooked, and misunderstood, Americans are starting to understand what my members in mixed-status marriages are going through. Jenni Rivera's nuanced and heartbreaking story was featured on This American Life this week, a milestone for our organization & our movement.
An open letter to Americans about what mixed-status couples are going through and an invitation to LISTEN to the story of one of our members, Jenni Rivera, who was featured on This American Life. 🧵
@thisamericanlife.org @usccbofficial.bsky.social @ncronline.bsky.social @jamesmartinsj.bsky.social
@thisamericanlife.org @usccbofficial.bsky.social @ncronline.bsky.social @jamesmartinsj.bsky.social
November 18, 2025 at 3:30 PM
An open letter to Americans about what mixed-status couples are going through and an invitation to LISTEN to the story of one of our members, Jenni Rivera, who was featured on This American Life. 🧵
@thisamericanlife.org @usccbofficial.bsky.social @ncronline.bsky.social @jamesmartinsj.bsky.social
@thisamericanlife.org @usccbofficial.bsky.social @ncronline.bsky.social @jamesmartinsj.bsky.social
Jenni Rivera is a U.S. citizen and long-time AFU member. Her story of separation from her husband Fidel and the impact on her daughters Mackenzie and Isabella is featured on the latest episode of This American Life. Starts at 18:11.
www.thisamericanlife.org/874/transcript
www.thisamericanlife.org/874/transcript
874: Under One Roof - This American Life
To keep the show going, we need more Life Partners. Show the love. Get bonus episodes!
www.thisamericanlife.org
November 17, 2025 at 11:48 PM
Jenni Rivera is a U.S. citizen and long-time AFU member. Her story of separation from her husband Fidel and the impact on her daughters Mackenzie and Isabella is featured on the latest episode of This American Life. Starts at 18:11.
www.thisamericanlife.org/874/transcript
www.thisamericanlife.org/874/transcript
In October 2025, AFU Action brought together advocates and leaders in Washington, D.C. to meet with policymakers, share perspectives, and amplify the voices of working families. Below are highlights from the event.
afuaction.org/dc-fly-in/
afuaction.org/dc-fly-in/
November 17, 2025 at 8:02 PM
In October 2025, AFU Action brought together advocates and leaders in Washington, D.C. to meet with policymakers, share perspectives, and amplify the voices of working families. Below are highlights from the event.
afuaction.org/dc-fly-in/
afuaction.org/dc-fly-in/
If you're looking for one of AFU's press releases, we now make them available through the beginning of this year. Reporters: reach out to us at [email protected] if you have questions for a story.
www.americanfamiliesunited.org/updates
www.americanfamiliesunited.org/updates
November 14, 2025 at 11:19 AM
If you're looking for one of AFU's press releases, we now make them available through the beginning of this year. Reporters: reach out to us at [email protected] if you have questions for a story.
www.americanfamiliesunited.org/updates
www.americanfamiliesunited.org/updates
We absolutely know what this is like. Our members at American Families United face the potential of family separation every single day. Some of our members are already separated, with US citizens living apart from their spouses, or living in exile together abroad.
Family faces potential deportation and separation after over a decade in the U.S.
More than 2 million people have been removed or have self deported since President Donald Trump took office, according to the White House. NBC News’ Morgan Radford spoke with one family hoping to…
www.nbcnews.com
November 13, 2025 at 2:30 PM
We absolutely know what this is like. Our members at American Families United face the potential of family separation every single day. Some of our members are already separated, with US citizens living apart from their spouses, or living in exile together abroad.
If you care about keeping American families together, here's an important update about the AFU Act. We returned from Washington DC recently where 30 AFU Action members spent 3 days on Capitol Hill talking to nearly 60 representatives about what the AFU Act would mean for our families. 🧵
November 12, 2025 at 4:33 PM
If you care about keeping American families together, here's an important update about the AFU Act. We returned from Washington DC recently where 30 AFU Action members spent 3 days on Capitol Hill talking to nearly 60 representatives about what the AFU Act would mean for our families. 🧵
Julie’s husband, Nef, came to the U.S. to build a better life for their family. But they were forced to make the heartbreaking decision for him to leave for Mexico, and now they don’t know when they’ll be together again. 💔
WATCH: www.instagram.com/p/DQ7MYwQDt0U/
WATCH: www.instagram.com/p/DQ7MYwQDt0U/
November 11, 2025 at 6:20 PM
Julie’s husband, Nef, came to the U.S. to build a better life for their family. But they were forced to make the heartbreaking decision for him to leave for Mexico, and now they don’t know when they’ll be together again. 💔
WATCH: www.instagram.com/p/DQ7MYwQDt0U/
WATCH: www.instagram.com/p/DQ7MYwQDt0U/
Reposted by Ashley DeAzevedo
His children lose their father's care.
Our economy loses his skill.
Our treasury loses his tax payments.
This family separation makes America poorer & less joyful.
President Reagan's amnesty program would have let him become a citizen after paperwork & paying $185 ($550 w/inflation).
Our economy loses his skill.
Our treasury loses his tax payments.
This family separation makes America poorer & less joyful.
President Reagan's amnesty program would have let him become a citizen after paperwork & paying $185 ($550 w/inflation).
It has been enormously difficult to see our members at American Families United go through forced family separation. Here's the story of Jenni and her husband. "Mexican father, reflecting a trend, leaves family of 19 years and self-deports due to threat of arrest."
abcnews.go.com/US/mexican-f...
abcnews.go.com/US/mexican-f...
Mexican father, reflecting a trend, leaves family of 19 years and self-deports due to threat of arrest
Fidel Rivera, a husband and father who has been in the U.S. for 30 years, is one of thousands of undocumented migrants who have self-deported due to the threat of arrest.
abcnews.go.com
November 11, 2025 at 10:36 AM
His children lose their father's care.
Our economy loses his skill.
Our treasury loses his tax payments.
This family separation makes America poorer & less joyful.
President Reagan's amnesty program would have let him become a citizen after paperwork & paying $185 ($550 w/inflation).
Our economy loses his skill.
Our treasury loses his tax payments.
This family separation makes America poorer & less joyful.
President Reagan's amnesty program would have let him become a citizen after paperwork & paying $185 ($550 w/inflation).
It has been enormously difficult to see our members at American Families United go through forced family separation. Here's the story of Jenni and her husband. "Mexican father, reflecting a trend, leaves family of 19 years and self-deports due to threat of arrest."
abcnews.go.com/US/mexican-f...
abcnews.go.com/US/mexican-f...
Mexican father, reflecting a trend, leaves family of 19 years and self-deports due to threat of arrest
Fidel Rivera, a husband and father who has been in the U.S. for 30 years, is one of thousands of undocumented migrants who have self-deported due to the threat of arrest.
abcnews.go.com
November 10, 2025 at 6:07 PM
It has been enormously difficult to see our members at American Families United go through forced family separation. Here's the story of Jenni and her husband. "Mexican father, reflecting a trend, leaves family of 19 years and self-deports due to threat of arrest."
abcnews.go.com/US/mexican-f...
abcnews.go.com/US/mexican-f...
Reposted by Ashley DeAzevedo
AFU Action is in Washington, D.C. this week. We bring our members here to meet with elected reps to tell their stories about how the immigration system is tearing families apart. Follow me here and on Instagram and X (@afuashley) for updates. Help us get the word out! #FamilyIsWorthFightingFor
October 21, 2025 at 1:53 PM
AFU Action is in Washington, D.C. this week. We bring our members here to meet with elected reps to tell their stories about how the immigration system is tearing families apart. Follow me here and on Instagram and X (@afuashley) for updates. Help us get the word out! #FamilyIsWorthFightingFor
Douglas Menjivar spoke out against abuse in ICE detention - and they deported him. This story hits home for me bc Douglas is married to US citizen & AFU member Monica Logan, who was forced to navigate cancer treatments alone. Now they are both exiled in Spain.
www.texasobserver.org/trump-ice-ar...
www.texasobserver.org/trump-ice-ar...
Trump's ICE Arrested a Whistleblower Who Exposed Sexual Assault in Detention. Now, He’s Left the Country.
Douglas Menjivar is a survivor and activist. He’s also married to a U.S. citizen, but he was caught up in the president’s mass deportation agenda anyway.
www.texasobserver.org
October 20, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Douglas Menjivar spoke out against abuse in ICE detention - and they deported him. This story hits home for me bc Douglas is married to US citizen & AFU member Monica Logan, who was forced to navigate cancer treatments alone. Now they are both exiled in Spain.
www.texasobserver.org/trump-ice-ar...
www.texasobserver.org/trump-ice-ar...
Reposted by Ashley DeAzevedo
Solid story of the forced break-up of an American family. In 1970s, we started to hear about "broken families." We were told it was bad for kids not to have a Dad at home. The culprit then was divorce and feminism.
In 2020s, the U.S. govt intentionally breaks families.
5 minutes worth watching.
In 2020s, the U.S. govt intentionally breaks families.
5 minutes worth watching.
ABC News featured Jenni Rivera’s story of losing her and her kids losing their husband and father to self deportation today. Please watch this video and sit with the agonizing reality that our members at American Families United face right now.
abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/vid...
abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/vid...
October 19, 2025 at 5:36 PM
Solid story of the forced break-up of an American family. In 1970s, we started to hear about "broken families." We were told it was bad for kids not to have a Dad at home. The culprit then was divorce and feminism.
In 2020s, the U.S. govt intentionally breaks families.
5 minutes worth watching.
In 2020s, the U.S. govt intentionally breaks families.
5 minutes worth watching.
ABC News featured Jenni Rivera’s story of losing her and her kids losing their husband and father to self deportation today. Please watch this video and sit with the agonizing reality that our members at American Families United face right now.
abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/vid...
abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/vid...
October 19, 2025 at 5:21 PM
ABC News featured Jenni Rivera’s story of losing her and her kids losing their husband and father to self deportation today. Please watch this video and sit with the agonizing reality that our members at American Families United face right now.
abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/vid...
abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/vid...
This is what our families at American Families United are going through. Listen to Julie’s story here with @austinkocher.com.
Live Discussion: US Citizens Separated from Spouses w/ Julie Moreno
austinkocher.substack.com/p/live-discu...
Live Discussion: US Citizens Separated from Spouses w/ Julie Moreno
austinkocher.substack.com/p/live-discu...
Live Discussion: US Citizens Separated from Spouses w/ Julie Moreno
On Substack Live yesterday, I spoke with Julie Moreno, a U.S. citizen from New Jersey who made the gut-wrenching decision to help her husband of nine years self-deport to Mexico.
austinkocher.substack.com
October 18, 2025 at 5:53 PM
This is what our families at American Families United are going through. Listen to Julie’s story here with @austinkocher.com.
Live Discussion: US Citizens Separated from Spouses w/ Julie Moreno
austinkocher.substack.com/p/live-discu...
Live Discussion: US Citizens Separated from Spouses w/ Julie Moreno
austinkocher.substack.com/p/live-discu...
These immigration raids are separating families, not actually keeping people safe. Read Rep. Tom Suozzi's important article in the New York Times for an important perspective on what's happening with immigration enforcement right now.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/o...
Opinion | We Should Be Cracking Down on the Cartels, Not Chicago
www.nytimes.com
October 18, 2025 at 5:50 PM
These immigration raids are separating families, not actually keeping people safe. Read Rep. Tom Suozzi's important article in the New York Times for an important perspective on what's happening with immigration enforcement right now.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/o...
AFU member Julie Moreno speaks out about her story:
US citizen Julie Moreno supported her Mexican husband, Nefatlí Juárez, in self-deporting for fear of being detained by ICE: ‘We were completely cornered’
english.elpais.com/usa/2025-10-...
US citizen Julie Moreno supported her Mexican husband, Nefatlí Juárez, in self-deporting for fear of being detained by ICE: ‘We were completely cornered’
english.elpais.com/usa/2025-10-...
Self-deportation or detention, the crossroads of 1.4 million couples in the Trump era
US citizen Julie Moreno supported her Mexican husband, Nefatlí Juárez, in self-deporting for fear of being detained by ICE: ‘We were completely cornered’
english.elpais.com
October 15, 2025 at 7:58 PM
AFU member Julie Moreno speaks out about her story:
US citizen Julie Moreno supported her Mexican husband, Nefatlí Juárez, in self-deporting for fear of being detained by ICE: ‘We were completely cornered’
english.elpais.com/usa/2025-10-...
US citizen Julie Moreno supported her Mexican husband, Nefatlí Juárez, in self-deporting for fear of being detained by ICE: ‘We were completely cornered’
english.elpais.com/usa/2025-10-...
Reposted by Ashley DeAzevedo
More than 4 million U.S. families have mixed immigration status. As the Trump administration continues to ramp up deportations, many of these families are preparing emergency plans.
What happens to the kids? Fearing deportation, immigrant parents make contingency plans.
More than 4 million U.S. families have mixed immigration status. As the Trump administration continues to ramp up deportations, many of these families are preparing emergency plans.
n.pr
October 3, 2025 at 1:55 PM
More than 4 million U.S. families have mixed immigration status. As the Trump administration continues to ramp up deportations, many of these families are preparing emergency plans.