EXCLUSIVE: Deportations, detention deaths, rising enforcement: immigration crackdown draws mounting scrutiny

The Trump administration’s immigration crackdown is facing growing criticism from civil rights groups and immigrant advocates, who argue that recent deportations, detention deaths and enforcement practices reveal a system under escalating strain.

At the center of the debate are new figures released by the Department of Homeland Security that show enforcement actions affecting young immigrants who were previously considered largely protected. According to information shared with lawmakers, DHS has detained at least 270 recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, deported 86 DACA recipients and deported 174 applicants.

For immigrant advocates, the numbers signal more than isolated enforcement actions.

“These are our classmates, our neighbors, our friends,” advocates said during a press call bringing together civil rights, labor and immigrant organizations. “These are not isolated incidents, this is targeting of young people.”

The figures come amid a broader policy shift since Donald Trump returned to the presidency, with immigration enforcement agencies expanding operations across the country and receiving significantly increased federal funding. Critics argue the result is a system that increasingly targets people with existing legal protections or pending immigration cases.

Civil rights leaders say the effects are already visible in communities across the country. Maya Wiley, president and chief executive of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, described the current moment as a wider challenge to constitutional protections.

“We are seeing the absolute onslaught attack on fundamental rights, on our civil liberties, and our basic abilities to have human dignity and go about our daily lives,” Wiley said.

She pointed to reports of families keeping children home from school and communities reacting with fear when immigration agents appear nearby.

“That’s not public safety, that’s public tyranny,” she said.

Immigration advocates argue that enforcement actions increasingly affect people who previously believed they were protected by US immigration policy. Kica Matos, president of the National Immigration Law Center, described cases in which individuals were detained or deported while navigating legal immigration processes.

“A mother with DACA just steps away from a more permanent status… was then blindsided by this administration and abruptly ripped away from her home from one day to the next,” Matos said.

The administration’s policies, she added, reflect a broader shift in how immigration enforcement is being used.

“It is about amassing power and stripping all of us of our constitutionally guaranteed rights and freedoms,” Matos said.

Advocates representing Black immigrant communities say the consequences are particularly severe for migrants from African and Caribbean countries. Patrice Lawrence, executive director of the UndocuBlack Network, said that legal protections are increasingly uncertain for immigrants with various statuses.

“We want to really emphasize what Kika was just saying about folks not being safe,” Lawrence said. “We’re not safe whether we’re on the street,” she added, describing cases where immigrants with legal documentation were detained despite presenting proof of their status.

Lawrence also pointed to restrictions affecting travel and visa access for many countries.

“As of January this year, nearly 70% of African countries… and 85% of Caribbean nations are subject to sweeping restrictions,” she said.

Immigrant labor groups warn that the enforcement surge is also affecting workplaces and the broader economy. Rocio Saenz, secretary-treasurer of the Service Employees International Union, said immigrant workers are facing mounting fear of detention or deportation.

“Immigrant workers and U.S. citizens are facing constant harassment and threats of detention, deportation, and illegalization,” Saenz said. “They’re being targeted because of the color of their skin, the language they speak, where they live and work.”

Educators say immigration enforcement is also affecting schools. Gladys Fátima Márquez, a member of the executive committee of the National Education Association, said immigration raids are creating anxiety among students and families.

“Families trust schools to be places where children can learn without fear,” Márquez said. “ICE does not belong in our schools or in our communities.”

Immigrant youth organizations are now focusing on documenting enforcement actions affecting DACA recipients. Juliana Macedo do Nascimento of United We Dream said advocacy groups launched a public tracker after reports of arrests and deportations involving young immigrants.

After senators requested official information from DHS, she said, the agency confirmed significant enforcement actions involving DACA recipients.

“This is obviously unacceptable, unconscionable, and a betrayal of the promises made by the U.S. Government,” Macedo do Nascimento said.

While enforcement actions are expanding, conditions inside detention facilities are also drawing attention. A Haitian detainee held at the Florence Correctional Center in Arizona died earlier this week after a tooth infection reportedly went untreated. His brother said the condition had been raised with medical staff but no dentist visit was arranged.

The case is one of several deaths reported in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody this year.

Advocates say such incidents highlight the human consequences of an immigration system that relies heavily on detention facilities run by both federal authorities and private contractors.

At the same time, the Department of Homeland Security has argued that immigration officers face increasing risks during enforcement operations. Officials say assaults against agents have risen sharply as deportation teams operate in cities across the country.

However, a review of federal data suggests that violent deaths among deportation officers remain rare. No deportation officer has died violently in the line of duty since ICE was created in 2003, and most line-of-duty deaths among the agency’s enforcement branch have been linked to Covid-19 rather than violent incidents.

For critics of current policy, the debate ultimately centers on the direction of immigration enforcement in the United States.

“The path to authoritarianism in this country right now is being built on the backs of immigrants,” Matos said.