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Tony Vara’s feed is so eclectic that it’s hard to describe. It feels like peak Gen Z. There are videos where he rants about Love Island. There are “get ready with me” posts where he’s doing his makeup before going out. But he’s also been working his way through the Bible—reviewing it like it’s any other piece of content.
He can clearly talk about anything. Sometimes he’s gotten called out for being too loud, too strident. Too jokey about race or class. That seems very Gen Z to me, too. Love or hate him, hundreds of thousands of people are following along.
Back in July, his feed took a turn when Immigration and Customs Enforcement took his mom. Vara is Latino. His mom is Salvadoran. And while he is a citizen, she is not. He had moved to Los Angeles after graduating from college in Virginia, but his mother’s arrest turned his world upside down.
On a recent episode of What Next, host Mary Harris spoke to Vara about how he used his popular TikTok account to document his family’s separation. This transcript has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Mary Harris: You grew up in Virginia, right? Can you tell me what that was like?
Tony Vara: Yeah, I was born in northern Virginia, and anyone who knows anything about northern Virginia said it’s very multicultural. It’s a very immigrant-heavy community. I’ve always grown up around other cultures. I love Virginia so much. I always tell everyone, “I’m retiring in Virginia—I’m dying in Virginia.”
You’re an American citizen. But when Donald Trump was elected, were you worried for your family?
I was worried for my family in general, yes. But I was also worried because—I knew Virginia wasn’t on track to do it—but the whole “show me your papers” thing in states really freaked me out, because I don’t carry around my passport.
I was also definitely nervous that Gov. Glenn Youngkin was having agreements with ICE and local police to turn anyone over. With Trump being elected and us knowing how Youngkin was running Virginia, we were always a little bit nervous. That’s why my mom didn’t really go out anywhere besides work. Obviously she went sometimes, with friends, but she really tried to stay home as much as possible.
So what do you know about how your mom was detained?
It happened at 4 or 5 a.m my time. My mom had to testify in a case that she was involved in. She was a witness. And she didn’t show up because she was scared of being detained. It was a case involving ICE.
She was taken for contempt or something like that, for not showing up. And they told her, “It’s fine, you just have to testify and you’re good to go.” So she went to testify, and then the courthouse basically turned her over to ICE.
We went to the jail, and I talked to the courthouse clerk, and they said, “No, your mom’s good, she’s going to be released at noon.” My siblings and I showed up at noon and were there for four hours. And I was like, “I need an update on my mom.” And then they were like, “We turned her over to ICE, like, 30 minutes ago.” So immediately we left. And that’s when I immediately locked in and started doing the whole process of gathering all her stuff and contacting family members.
Once you knew your mom had been taken by ICE, you eventually said you felt like you were a single mother. Did that happen right away? Were you like, “Oh, I guess this is what I’m doing now, I’m staying here with my siblings”? Or did you come to that realization gradually?
No, that happened literally as soon as I found out my mom was taken by ICE. When I came from California to Virginia, I flew with the assumption that my mom was just taken by the police. So I figured I’d stay there for a couple of days. I didn’t realize I’d be staying there for two months before I even went back to my apartment.
I did realize that day that this is what it is now. I immediately went to my grandma’s because she’s basically my second mother.
That’s so intense. And I’m thinking about how people within the Trump administration talk about the detentions they’re doing and how they often talk about it as though these are criminals. And I could see them putting your mom in that pile, right? Because she was criminally detained. I wonder if you would have something to say to people who say that?
It’s unrealistic to act like they’re only going after criminals, because especially when you bring up that very valid point, people say, “Oh, well, because it’s happening in such large numbers, of course mistakes are going to be made.” And it’s like, no, it’s actually just racial profiling. My uncle—he’s more American than I am, but he’s visibly more Indigenous and Honduran-looking—was literally stopped by ICE in D.C. and asked for papers. It’s scary that people have to walk around with their documents in order to prove that they’re allowed to be here.
What was the hardest part about being your siblings’ caretaker? What did the day-to-day look like? Were you making them breakfast and getting them to school? Did you have help with that from your grandmother or others?
I will definitely thank my family for that because it takes a village. When my siblings and I moved into my grandma’s house, everyone took a specific responsibility, especially before my mom was released. I tried to make dinner for my little brother, but he doesn’t like the way I cook. So my grandma would always make him food.
But the hardest part for me wasn’t even the daily routine. It was the emotional support that they needed. I didn’t grow up living with my brother. So I didn’t know what bothered him as much. And my sister is very much a teenage girl, so she doesn’t want to show any emotions. I didn’t know how to necessarily be there for them in the way that my mom was.
When did you learn your mom was going to be deported?
Early September, I believe. She did her whole interview, and they said that she didn’t pass it.
But the judge that was interviewing her, I did research on him, and I saw his statistics and knew we had to start planning for that deportation. And obviously that ended up happening. So I had a contingency plan to be there in El Salvador when she arrived because I wanted to make sure at least somebody that she knew was there. Just because she barely has any family in El Salvador. Most of her family is in Virginia.
She was deported to El Salvador. That’s where she’s from.
Yes. But she’s living in Honduras right now because she doesn’t really have family in El Salvador. She’s staying with my dad’s side of the family in Honduras. And my brother is now with her.
How has this experience changed you?
I feel like—and I think it comes with turning 25—but my frontal lobe has developed and it’s like, “All right, time to be an adult now.” Before, I was living in L.A., I was partying, and not saving as much money as I could. But now I’m a lot more diligent with what I’m spending money on. I’m looking out for not just myself, but my siblings as well.
I also have obviously matured a lot because the last six months have been really hard. But it’s also mended the relationship that me and my mom had because we weren’t always super close. We used to fight a lot. And I think this has brought us a lot closer. It’s kind of like a fresh start for all of us.
So what do you do now? I could see a couple of different ways it goes. I could see this experience meaning you feel more American than ever and motivated to fight for whatever you want to happen. I could also see you just being like, “Screw it.” What do you think?
That’s definitely a thought that’s passed through my head, the whole “screw it” thing. “This country has done nothing but traumatize me in the last six months. Maybe I’ll just move to Spain.”
But then I thought about the kind of content I do, the work I do. Why would I not fight for this?
I do love this country. I just don’t see myself living in Honduras or El Salvador. And I had seen myself living in Spain, but I think I do want to live here. This is where I grew up, this is where I was born and raised, you know? So why not fight for it? Even the content I make, I advocate for immigrants, I advocate for reproductive rights, I advocate for gay rights. Obviously, all that stuff exists in other countries as well, but that’s not where I was born and raised. That’s not where I have the biggest connection to.
Editor’s note: We reached out to ICE and the Department of Homeland Security about Vara’s experience. About Vara’s mom, a DHS spokesperson emailed, “She was previously removed from the United States in 2007. She chose to illegally re-enter our country—a felony—at an unknown date and location. She received full due process, and her prior final order of removal was reinstated. ICE removed this criminal illegal alien on September 9, 2025.”
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