Barely Famous
Immigration Lawyer Kathleen Martinez on Green Cards, Deportation Myths & Fighting ICE in Pink
Fri, 02 May 2025
In this powerful episode of Barely Famous, Kail sits down with viral immigration attorney and content creator Kathleen Martinez, known for her unapologetically pink brand and bold advocacy for immigrant rights. Together, they dive into the harsh realities and common myths surrounding the U.S. immigration system; from the true cost of green cards to the emotional and financial toll of mass deportation.Kathleen opens up about her journey from being pushed out of a conservative law firm to founding a successful, women-led virtual immigration practice with over 45 employees. She shares eye-opening truths about why legal immigration isn’t as “simple” as people think, the dangers of misinformation, and how her viral content is changing minds; even among her most unexpected followers.Whether you’re curious about how U.S. immigration law really works, want to better understand asylum cases, or simply love hearing stories of empowered women breaking barriers in male-dominated industries, this episode is packed with education, inspiration, and raw honesty.Follow Kathleen: @immigrationlawyer on TikTok & InstagramLearn more: KathleenMartinezLaw.comFor full video episodes head to patreon.com/kaillowryThanks for supporting the show by checking out the sponsors!Quince: Give yourself the luxury you deserve with Quince! Go to quince.com/famousBoll And Branch: Now’s your chance to change the way you sleep with Boll and Branch. Get 15% off, plus free shipping on your first set of sheets at bollandbranch.com/barelyfamousIQ Bar: To get 20% off IQ Bar and free shipping text FAMOUS to 64000Better Help: for 10% off your first month visit betterhelp.com/barelyTo find the right home for you head to apartments.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Chapter 1: Who is Kathleen Martinez and why is she a notable immigration attorney?
Welcome to the shit show. Things are going to get weird. It's your fave villain, Kale Lowry. And you're listening to Barely Famous. It's Friday, welcome to another episode of Barely Famous Podcast. Today I have a guest you may recognize from Instagram, TikTok, and all of the work in the immigration community. I have Kathleen Martinez sitting with me and welcome to Barely Famous Podcast.
Thank you so much for having me.
Yeah, no, I followed you a long time ago, but with all of the immigration things that are happening, I got on TikTok and I was... saying how I felt about what's going on. And people really felt like I was speaking out of turn. And I don't think that they recognize how much immigration impacts people who are not immigrants.
But I would just love to go from start to finish with you about, you know, how you started and where you are now.
Sure. Yeah. So I mean, when I was in law school, or when I was in college, actually, I went to school with a lot of undocumented immigrants in LA. And I really got to know them.
I didn't really know anything about immigration until I met someone that I was involved with, you know, like whether it was my friends or my classmates or my coworkers, I really learned about their stories and I kind of became more empathetic and understanding to how they got here and why they were undocumented. So I was definitely interested.
And then I worked randomly at a family law firm and a lot of my clients, I did a lot of CPS cases because it was just a job that I got, right? And then they would ask me like, hey, can you help me out on my green card or on my DACA? You're already my lawyer. And I was like, sure. And then the more I did it, the more I loved immigration because I became a happy lawyer.
When you're a family lawyer, you're a not so happy lawyer. I've heard. You're dealing with like litigious divorces and CPS. And, you know, it's really hard and really stressful. But then I started making people happy. I would get them green cards. And I also fell in love with like immigrants as like as people, as clients, because I They're the best clients.
They're so grateful, so humble, so kind, and so hardworking. Meeting people from all walks of life, you learn so much from them that I'm like, this is why I'm a lawyer. This is how I want to spend all my time is helping people like this.
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Chapter 2: What are the common myths surrounding immigration?
And I also think that they see things on social media. This episode is brought to you by BetterHelp. I recently was on a little therapy hiatus, but I'm happy to say that last week was my first week back in a little while. And I'm so happy to be back. Mental health awareness is growing, but there's still progress to be made.
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Visit betterhelp.com slash barely to get 10% off your first month. That's betterhelp, H-E-L-P dot com slash barely. So I talk about this a lot. It's not new information. My kids go to Spanish immersion school. So their half day is English and half day is Spanish, which I have absolutely loved. And I literally sought that out and applied them to it.
I can't find that in Texas, by the way, which is interesting. Yeah. And that was something that I specifically sent my kids to the school for. And so with that being said, there is a large Hispanic population and And the kids are talking about it. And my son came home crying.
So just going circling back to like the whole conversation surrounding deportation and immigration is like this is not just impacting immigrants. And people are so caught up in the criminal aspect of it. That is just I don't know how to get through to people who don't want to see it. And I know. So sometimes I feel like I'm wasting my breath and like I'm wasting my time trying to talk about it.
But at the same time, I'm like, I want to change their minds. Maybe if they hear it from me as a white woman living in the suburbs, maybe they'll at least just give me a chance, hear us out, hear what we're saying. Do you think that because you are a woman in law and a woman that talks about immigration and you wear pink all the time, do you find it hard for people to take you seriously?
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