AOC Campaign Aide Self-Deports to Colombia (EXCLUSIVE)
Diego de la Vega spent 23 years as an undocumented American—now, he’s building a life without fear in Bogotá.
WASHINGTON — Diego de la Vega has a new life in Colombia—one without fear, with freedom of mobility, and with the agency he never had during his 23 years in New York City. Born in Quito, Ecuador, de la Vega migrated to the United States as a 7-year-old in 2001 on a visitor’s visa that he overstayed. Thus began his life as an undocumented American.
“It was very clear to me early on that our status was different. Even as a child, I understood what being illegal meant. We knew we had to protect ourselves,” de la Vega said in an exclusive interview Wednesday with Migrant Insider. “We lived in fear because we were not of the right status, but I had a pretty good childhood in New York. We worked hard, starting out in a basement apartment. But we went to school and got jobs.”