This year more than ever, EJP recognizes the linkages between incarceration in the United States and the criminalization of immigrants, particularly those from Mexico. Some EJP students, after serving a long sentence in prison, have been deported. Some of them came to the United States seeking a better future like previous generations of immigrants, and others were brought by their parents at a young age. Reentry is already a difficult process, but for those returning to a different country it can be an especially traumatic experience.
We are delighted to share that, through EJP’s Mexico Scholarship program, this spring we awarded ten scholarships to individuals who have been impacted by incarceration or deportation to Mexico. This year’s awardees are a diverse group of individuals seeking to improve their lives through education. Scholarship funds must be used for educational expenses and are paid directly to the educational institutions.
2025 marks the fifth year EJP has hosted the Mexico Scholarships Program. In addition to welcoming applications from individuals who have been deported from the US, we also accept them from individuals formerly incarcerated in Mexican prisons and immediate family members of someone who has been deported from the US
Among this year’s recipients, Cesar Fierro spent 40 years on death row in Texas before being released. He was the oldest Mexican person on death row in the United States. In 2020, he was set free when his sentence was vacated after claims of several errors in the case against him. Fierro says police threatened to torture his parents if he did not confess to a murder he did not commit. After he was paroled, he was deported to Mexico, where he now lives. In 2022, Fierro received an EJP scholarship to take a baking class. This year, he is continuing his culinary journey by enrolling in a cooking class, which the EJP scholarship will help him to pay for. Now in his 60s, he is hoping to find a way he can make a living by pursuing his love of cooking. There are two documentary films about Fierro where you can learn more about his story: The Years of Fierro about the campaign for his freedom, and The Freedom of Fierro, about his reentry into Mexican society. If you feel moved to support Cesar, you can donate to his GoFundMe page.
Ana Garcia (pictured at right) is a social media influencer who speaks out for undocumented and deported people. Ana was deported to Mexico in 2018, and after a two-year-long court battle, her five children joined her there. She is now working on a law degree at Vizcaya University in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. As she stated in her application letter, “education is a form of resistance.” Due to her own experience, she wanted to become an attorney. “It is my way of fighting injustice,” she says, “especially for immigrants navigating the legal complexities of life in the US.” Education is her way of “building a future where justice is within reach for those who need it most.”
Other scholarship recipients this year include:
Dani A. [we are not including the full names of individuals out of concern for confidentiality] is a nursing student in Michoacán, Mexico. A US citizen effectively exiled to Mexico because of her father’s deportation, she has had limited opportunities available to her as a result. This is the third year Dani has received the EJP scholarship. She has the goal of specializing in geriatric nursing after spending the last year taking care of her aging grandmother.
Luis G. applied from a US prison before his deportation just one day before the scholarship committee met to decide on the applications. He’s returning to Mexico after decades away and is in search of educational opportunities.
David A., Arturo S., Diego O. and Jose A. are all formerly incarcerated juveniles from central Mexico. They are taking art classes through the reentry and human rights-focused organization Delibera.
Gonzalo D. was released from prison in Mexico just recently after a 17-year sentence. He is hoping to use his scholarship to get a degree at the University of Guadalajara.
For more on EJP’s Mexico scholarships go to our website.
