This Is What Mass Deportation Looks Like: Faith Leaders and Parents in the Crosshairs; Key Industries Worried

Access online version of this press release HERE

Washington, DC — In our latest installment of the America’s Voice, “This is What Mass Deportation Looks Like” series, we highlight some of the latest examples of Trump’s mass deportation cruelty and chaos in action – and the related harms and fears to local communities and economies. Longtime residents and trusted workers with deep ties to their communities, including faith leaders, business owners, and parents, are among those being detained and deported (see our “Trump’s America” map for a state-by-state snapshot of stories and examples).

According to Vanessa Cárdenas, Executive Director of America’s Voice:

“Americans are witnessing up close a shocking pattern of abuse by our own government toward our immigrant neighbors. Every day we see heartbreaking stories of hard-working immigrants — including teachers, pastors and parents —who are being swept up in a mass deportation dragnet that defies common sense and undermines the Constitution. Americans are watching this unfold in real time and are recoiling, with many rightly asking: is this who we want to be?” Americans want to fix a broken immigration system, not to undermine our rule of law

Below find key excerpts from recent coverage and examples of Trump’s widening immigration dragnet:

• NPR, “In Florida, an immigrant pastor’s detention sends a community reeling,” noting: “He’s an Evangelical Pastor at a local church, he’s lived here for 20 years. He also owns a landscaping business, tending the lawns and yards in the neighboring city of Fort Myers. And a few weeks ago, he was detained in President Trump’s massive immigration crackdown…”

• Miami Herald (editorial): “In city built by waves of immigration, TPS ruling is more than a blow to Venezuelans,” noting: “If deportations happen at the mass scale that President Donald Trump has promised, we’re not just talking about individual harm but also harm done to local businesses and the local economy that these migrants support with their labor and patronage. In other words, this could have a devastating impact on our communities. The revocation of TPS will likely affect our neighbors, co-workers, family members and friends.”

• New York Times, “‘Whom Shall I Fear?’ In South Texas, Two Bakers Face Trump’s Immigration Wrath,” noting, “Most mornings, Leonardo Baez, a father of seven, wakes up hours before sunrise to mix bread dough in the border city of Los Fresnos, Texas. Punishing and laborious work, yes, but owning a beloved bakery has been a lifelong dream of his, he said. It is now in jeopardy. In February, federal agents swooped down on his shop, Abby’s Bakery, detained workers they said were in the country illegally and pressed charges against the owners, Mr. Baez and his wife, Nora Alicia Avila.”

• NewsChannel 5 (Nashville, TN), “’They’re struggling,’ Impact of immigration raids hits Nashville classrooms,” noting, “Nearly 200 immigrants have been arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Nashville, leaving the community shaken, including children in local schools. Teachers at Metro Nashville Public Schools report that some students are missing classes out of fear, despite no confirmed reports of ICE agents at bus stops or schools. ‘The fear that kids have, the fear that they have for their families, is very much real, and we see it every day. We hear it every day,’ said Sydnei Washington, a teacher at Metro Nashville Public Schools. What should be a safe place – school – has become a source of anxiety for some students and their families following the wave of ICE arrests.”

• News & Observer (Raleigh, NC): “Trump’s purge of undocumented immigrants is already threatening North Carolina’s economy” (from opinion editor Ned Barnett), noting: “In North Carolina, workers are already in short supply. Dave Simpson, president and CEO of the Carolina Association of General Contractors, said there’s more work than workers, particularly in western North Carolina, where there is massive damage from Hurricane Helene. ‘The workforce shortage in North Carolina and South Carolina is the biggest challenge we have. Nothing comes close,’ he said … Trump promised during his campaign to close an ‘open’ southern border and deport criminals who are in the U.S. illegally. But he’s taken aim at all undocumented people and is pushing for mass deportations … Most of them are working and helping to keep the U.S. economy humming. Losing a significant share of these workers will hurt industries that rely heavily on immigrant labor, such as construction, health care and hospitality.”