Fear ramp up in migrant communities as Trump administration

The feeling of fear and restlessness is wave through American immigrant communities because the Trump administration has reduced the arrest of unspecified migrants, criminals and those who are equally without criminal history.

Federal officials have arrested thousands of unspecified migrants as Donald Trump took over on January 20, increasing raids in cities across the country including Chicago, New York, Denver and Los Angeles.

On Tuesday, the press secretary of the White House Karolin Lewitt said that while the arrest of criminals would be given priority, no one is illegally “away from the table” in the country.

In some communities, arrests have inspired some migrants to quit work or keep their children home from school.

According to daily data published by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), more than 3,500 unspecified migrants have been arrested since Trump returns to the White House, including more than 1,000 on Tuesday, 969 on Monday and 1,179 on Sunday. Are.

Comparatively, an average of 310 was created during the financial year of 2024, when Joe was in the biden office, according to the agency.

Immigration authorities have described these raids as “targeted enforcement operations”, resulting in arrest of members of violent gangs and dangerous suspects, and exchanges to help agents from other federal law enforcement agencies to arrest agents Has done

“I haven’t seen anything from a distance in this way, and it is the first few days of the presidential post,” said California -based director Attorney Jeena Amato Laf for an immigration advocacy group, the rights of immigrants. “Nothing of this magnitude.”

Ms. Loof said that “the intention is to build shock and amazement”.

“It is working,” he said. “It is also causing terror in the community.”

The White House and Ice have promoted some of these arrests, showing photographs of suspects and providing details of their original and crime countries, including sexual offenses, attacks and drug trafficking offenses.

But the White House has made it clear that any unspecified migrants have been caught in these raids – whether criminals or not – are subject to arrest and exile, even though there is an illegal case in America.

Earlier this week, the press secretary of the White House Karolin Levitt claimed that all of them are criminals.

He told reporters on Tuesday, “He illegally broke our country’s laws, and therefore, what are the criminals because the administration goes away.”

The arrest has already had a cold impact on many immigrant communities across America.

For example, Ms. Loof said that unspecified customers have expressed a fear about visiting any government agency – even to obtain a driver’s license – or to draw medical attention to hospitals.

“We are hearing that people are nervous, and we are receiving left and right calls,” Michael Lucines, Executive Director of Emica Center for Immigrant Rights, said, an organization that officers detained by officials for free legal Provides representation.

“People are afraid of going to work, or to send their children to schools,” he said, the Trump administration said that the efforts of their organization to enter the custody facilities to meet the prisoners blocked their organization’s efforts to meet the prisoners. Is.

“This is what the White House wants – to create fear in people and leave them,” he said. “This is not something we have ever seen.”

Among those who expressed fear are Gabrila, who is a Bolivian migrant, who entered the US 20 years ago, hid under a pile of corn stalk in a smuggler case boot on a trip.

Now a housekeeper in Maryland, Gabrila Initially, Trump’s election victory was unrelatedAssuming that it would only target criminals and many migrants will benefit from a better economy.

But nine days in administration, she says that she has been frightened with many of her neighbors, after seeing that the snow operated in nearby communities.

He told the BBC, “Many people of my building have stopped sending their children to schools. No one is going to the church now.” “We are tuning in the online month.”

Gabrila said that he has started packing his belongings in the hope that, if arrested and exiled, familiarity may be able to send him back to Bolivia.

Another unspecified migrant, a Mexican National named Carlos, who lives in New York City, reported that BBC’s concerns over possible arrests have conducted some underground.

Carlos said, “We heard that snow was not away from me,” Karlos said, whose son is an American citizen born in New York.

Like Gabriella, Carlos was initially optimistic about Trump’s electoral victory and thought he would indirectly benefit from Trump’s promises to promote the economy and promote low inflation indirectly.

He said, “This is scary. I am avoiding excessively to be excessive than getting out on the road.” “I have no problem with arresting criminals. But we keep hearing that other people – workers – are also being taken away.”

Both Gabrila and Carlos asked only their first names to identify, the authorities feared vengeance or attention.

It is not clear how many of the arrested people have criminal history and how many are the first Trump administration has called the “collateral” arrests.

NBC has reported that on January 26, only 52% of the detained people were considered “criminal arrests”, cited as administration officials.

The BBC has contacted the White House for comment on data.

When asked about the number in a press briefing on Tuesday, Ms. Levit only said that anyone who breaks the laws of our country “is a criminal.