With humanitarian protections such as parole and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) being revoked, green cards rescinded over political views, federal agencies like the IRS pressured to disclose immigrant applicants, and social media activity scrutinized in naturalization cases, it is evident that undocumented immigrants are not the only ones at risk.<\/p>\n
Speakers<\/b><\/b><\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/siliconeer.com\/current\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Speakers-03-28-25-Deportation-Dragnet.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/p>\n
- \n
- <\/i>Zenobia Lai<\/b>, Executive Director at Houston Immigration Legal Services Collaborative<\/li>\n
- David Leopold<\/b>, American Immigration Lawyers Association Past President, Partner at UB Greensfelder LLP in Cleveland, OH<\/li>\n
- Todd Schulte<\/b>, President of FWD.us<\/li>\n
- Martin Kim<\/b>, Director of Immigration Advocacy at AAJC in DC<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
\nThe administration has aggressively pursued immigration-related policies, issuing at least seven executive orders on the matter among 26 on its first day. It has not only intensified border security through the mass deputization of military, federal, state, and local law enforcement by declaring immigration a national emergency, but it is also utilizing historical legal precedents to expedite removals.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re using antiquated war power to pick people out,\u201d said Zenobia Lai, referring to the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. In mid-March, Trump invoked this rarely used law for the first time since World War II, enabling the deportation of migrants to countries other than their own, including El Salvador and Panama. While the policy was officially aimed at the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang, no evidence has been provided regarding the identities of those deported or their alleged criminal affiliations.<\/p>\n
As of March 31, the administration claimed to have deported 17 additional \u201cviolent criminals\u201d from the Tren de Aragua and MS-13 gangs, including individuals accused of murder and rape, to El Salvador\u2019s maximum-security prison. This aligns with a February agreement between U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, which mandates the incarceration of deported U.S. criminals regardless of nationality\u2014a deal Rubio has called \u201cthe most unprecedented, extraordinary migratory agreement anywhere in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
Other controversial measures include an executive order rescinding birthright citizenship, which is now before the Supreme Court; the elimination of the Biden-era \u201csensitive locations policy\u201d that protected public spaces like churches, schools, hospitals, and funerals from immigration enforcement; and an order mandating data-sharing between states and federal agencies, including the IRS, alongside widespread federal layoffs and budget reductions.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey have not been just going after criminals, like the administration said,\u201d Lai continued. \u201cImmigrants are being used to test the rule of law. U.S. residents are being snatched off the street, and green cards revoked without due process.\u201d<\/p>\n
In recent weeks, at least nine visa holders, including graduate students, have been detained by ICE\u2014many accused of being \u201cpro-Hamas.\u201d Among the most high-profile cases are Tufts University graduate student Rumeysa Ozturk and Columbia University\u2019s Mahmoud Khalil.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe as a country, ask people to come in, and we are now stripping that status away,\u201d said Todd Schulte. \u201cIn the next couple of years, we can be a country that not only keeps people in these statuses, but builds towards a permanent status, and if that\u2019s not going to happen, we shouldn\u2019t be throwing people into chaos.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Trump administration has also revoked work permits and deportation protections for 532,000 Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan individuals under the Biden-era CHNV parole sponsorship, effective late April\u2014just 25 days after March 30. However, on March 31, a San Francisco District Judge blocked the deportation of approximately 348,000 Venezuelans covered under TPS.<\/p>\n
\u201cParole authority has gone back seven decades. It\u2019s been used by every president of every party, and it\u2019s been a tremendous success,\u201d Schulte argued, citing examples such as the 76,000 Afghan refugees who fled the Taliban in 2021 and over 280,000 Ukrainians escaping the war with Russia since 2022.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople seeking refuge is not an invasion,\u201d he emphasized. \u201cLast November, the public was unhappy with what they saw as a chaotic border. Let\u2019s build a secure pathway to citizenship \u2026 because if you create a situation where immigrants don\u2019t have access to education, housing or basic health care, the chaos is a force multiplier for everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the administration is willing to violate principles of due process, when it comes to immigrants, there is no reason. There\u2019s no reason to think that anybody is going to be exempt from that \u2026 including citizens and permanent residents,\u201d warned Martin Kim.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n
He further highlighted the impact of the administration\u2019s January 27 decision to cut over $3 trillion in federal grants and loans, leaving community organizations struggling to maintain essential services like English education, citizenship workshops, and legal aid. \u201cThe weakening of rights for immigrant communities weakens rights for everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe through line with all of this is a destruction of American due process,\u201d said David Leopold.<\/p>\n
\u201cImmigrants are the tip of the spear, and what are being offended are core American values,\u201d he cautioned. \u201cNobody wants dangerous gangs in the country, but people have a right to defend themselves. People have a right to be heard \u2026 This is something we have not ever seen, at least in my lifetime, and it\u2019s a very, very dark moment in history.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reflecting on his own family\u2019s history, Leopold added, \u201cMy grandfather, as a Jew, didn\u2019t outsmart the Nazis to get the United States so that I could cower in fear. I have worked with people in totalitarian regimes, and the best protection is public honesty,\u201d<\/p>\n
He concluded with a quote from Rabbi Hillel: \u201c\u2018If I am not for myself, who will be for me, and if I\u2019m only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?\u2019\u201d He urged that this moment demands reflection and action, as future generations will ask what was done during this time of crisis.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
All images provided by American Community Media\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Beyond President Trump\u2019s initial pledge to remove criminal migrants, detentions and deportations have expanded to affect legal residents, visa holders, and tourists. In a media briefing on March 28, hosted by American Community Media, a panel of experts discussed the deportation onslaught and who is safe from this dragnet.\u00a0 With humanitarian protections such as parole…<\/p>\n
- David Leopold<\/b>, American Immigration Lawyers Association Past President, Partner at UB Greensfelder LLP in Cleveland, OH<\/li>\n