Who will protect our kababayans from ICE?

“Deportation isn't something that is suddenly new.”

—Jack Kingston

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

IF the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) crackdown against undocumented immigrants was “only the beginning”, according to President Donald Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, there’s a possibility it will continue as long as Mr. Trump is the president.

And it will be until 2028?

Since January 20, 2025, ICE, the Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have, so far, arrested more than 4,000 illegal aliens with criminal records in lightening raids conducted around the United States.

Many of those rounded up were immediately deported to Mexico, Guatemala, Brazil, Haiti, Colombia using U.S. military aircrafts.

Luckily, no Filipino has been arrested as of press time.

This won’t mean, however, that our kababayans, who are not known to be violent people or with known links to criminal gangs, are already safe.

Who will protect them if they aren’t safe from the ICE crackdown?

All persons in the United States have constitutional protections, including the right to remain silent when questioned or arrested by immigration officers, according to the National Immigrant Justice Center.

Being stopped by immigration officers or other law enforcement can be frightening, but it’s important to stay calm. During any encounter with law enforcement, it’s important to do the following:

—Stay calm and don’t run, argue, resist, or fight the officer, even if you believe your rights are being violated or you are being treated unfairly. Keep your hands where police can see them and tell them if you need to reach into a glove compartment or for a wallet to show your papers.

—Don’t lie about your status or provide false documents.

 

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If they are pulled over in a traffic stop: Ask if the officer is from the police department or immigration. Immigration officers often identify themselves as “police,” but they are not police. Ask if they are from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or Customs and Border Protection (CBP). If they are immigration officers, follow these guidelines about what information to provide.    

If they are U.S. citizens or have lawful immigration status: Show passport, legal permanent resident card, work permit, or other documentation of status. If they are over the age of 18, they should carry their papers with them at all times.

If they are undocumented: They have the right to remain silent and do not have to discuss immigration or citizenship status with the police, immigration agents, or other officials. Anything they tell an officer can later be used against them in immigration court.

Here’s more: If an officer knocks on your door: Do not open the door. Teach your children not to open the door. Officers must have a warrant signed by a judge to enter your home. ICE “warrants” are not signed by judges; they are ICE forms signed by ICE officers and they do not grant authority to enter a home without consent of the occupant(s).

If they are outdoors and think they see immigration officers nearby:

Move to a safe indoor space

If they are U.S. citizens and feel safe to do so, record the activity with phone or write down any relevant information about what they witness—ALWAYS being careful to not interfere or otherwise obstruct the operation

DO NOT: Post unverified information on social media or interfere with the investigation or otherwise put themselves in harm’s way

 

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Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, confirmed in her first-ever press conference January 28 that those who have overstayed their visas can be considered as criminals and may be next in line once all the targeted illegal aliens have been flushed out.

This made many migrants, including Filipinos, cringe in fear even more because it appears “nobody is safe” anymore in as far as the Trump administration’s all-out campaign to arrest and deport illegal immigrants believed to be more than 11 million is concerned.

Conducting high-profile raids in cities from New York to Denver over its first full week, the second Trump administration has hit the ground running on its pledge to begin mass deportations of migrants in the country illegally.

If deportations continue at their current rate, Newsweek said it would take around 28 years to deliver on the president's promise to repatriate upwards of 11 million people.

Public data from ICE flight tracking, analyzed by a third-party expert and shared with Newsweek, showed there had been three deportation flights on military planes since President Trump took office last January 20, with fewer regular ICE aircraft making those trips.

"They're intending to do a lot more. Their intent to deport a lot more people from the interior and that would require, obviously, a lot more resources," Tom Cartwright, from the left-leaning Witness at the Border advocacy group, was quoted by Newsweek January 28.

President Trump was elected, in part, for his promises of mass deportations of illegal immigrants, which he pledged would start from the day he returned to the White House. Recent polling has reflected strong support, from both Republicans and Democrats, for policies addressing a broken immigration system and poor border security.

 

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Still, the breadth of Trump's campaign promise to deport every illegal migrant in the country has run up against the typical bureaucratic headwinds of resources and money. Tom Homan, the new "border czar," has said the administration will need Congress to earmark at least $86 billion for the deportation initiative, acknowledging it will be "expensive" but arguing it will be worth the cost.

The estimates of how many migrants are in the U.S. illegally vary, with the best guesses from the federal government and Pew Research settling on around 11 million. Not all of them are on ICE's radar for deportation, however.

With more raids across the country in recent days, including in New York City January 28 morning, ICE is expected to continue to increase its enforcement alongside other agencies in the coming weeks, while the White House will seek to show it is delivering on Trump's promises by showcasing the raids on social media and in the press.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two daily newspapers in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

 

‘Arrest’ of 34-year-old Pinoy in New York sparks panic

“For the undocumented immigrants, the big priority is just to get out from the shadows, be able to get a driver's license, buy an airplane ticket and stop worrying about sudden deportation. But for the country as a whole, it's crucial that everybody have a citizen's stake in the nation's welfare.”

—Gail Collins

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

THE reported arrest by the New York Police Department (NYPD) of a 34-year-old Filipino male in Elmhurst, Queens, New York City hours before the inauguration of President Donald Trump in Washington D.C. on January 20, had sparked fears and panic among worried members of the Filipino community.

Adding to confusion was the seemingly misleading and cryptic story that quoted Ambassador to the US, Jose Manuel Romualdez, and picked up by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in Manila that “24 Filipinos have been deported from the US.”

“We’ve monitored around 24 Filipinos who have already been deported from the US because they were involved in some criminal activities, but these were not very serious crimes. They were already deported, something like 24,” Romualdez was quoted in the news shared by various TV and radio networks in Manila January 27.

The truth is, no single Filipino migrant was among the reported 1,300 undocumented aliens with criminal records that have been arrested, so far, in raids since January 20, when President Donald Trump took office until most recently.

This writer had exclusively reported a zero arrest involving Filipinos anywhere in the 50 states within that period.

 

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Romualdez could be referring to Filipinos with links to criminal activities nabbed and processed under the past Biden administration, not during the lightning U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) raids from January 20 onward.

The ambassador, however, did not clarify his strikingly worrisome and ambiguous statement, which was erroneously interpreted to mean that 24 Filipinos were altogether arrested and deported alongside those who have been deported recently to Guatemala, Mexico, Colombia.

“According to some lawyers, ICE, or any law enforcement for that matter, can’t just pick us up or enter in our apartment without any warrant of arrest,” insisted a 56-year-old Filipina caregiver, who lives with her husband, a chef, and two daughters aged 19 and 23 in reaction to the case of a 34-year-old Filipino male. “We have the right to remain silent, but we will not lie, of course.”

Thaddeus, 70, confirmed his nephew, Donovan, 34, has not returned as of January 27, or seven days since being taken away by the NYPD in their apartment on 57th Avenue.

“I texted him, but he has not answered back,” Thaddeus disclosed. “I’m sure he was in the custody of of the NYPD because I was the one who opened the door when the cops arrived and presented an order from a judge.”

Thaddeus did not elaborate.

Donovan’s landlady, Exotica, 75, downed by flu for two weeks now, admitted she has not seen the 34-year-old tenant since January 20.

 

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Thaddeus refused to comment if Donavan’s case was related to the ongoing city-to-city and state-by-state raids and arrests by elements of the ICE and CBP but emphasized that his nephew did not have a criminal record.

“I only learned he was recently involved in a misunderstanding related to a domestic spat, but I don’t think it would warrant his deportation,” surmised Thaddeus.   

Donovan, a hospital employee in Brooklyn, is from Negros Occidental. When his father died in Colorado 12 years ago, he was entrusted to Thaddeus.

ICE and CBP have not been coordinating with the local police when conducting operations related to the Trump administration’s policy to rid the United States of undocumented aliens with criminal records in many parts of the country, especially in so-called “sanctuary” cities like New York, Boston, New Jersey, Chicago, and California, was learned.

Suspicious Filipinos had speculated Donovan’s cases could be part of the ICE and CBP operations that have so far rounded up 1,300 migrants mostly from Mexico, Haiti, Honduras, Guatemala, Venezuela.

The controversial raids and arrests implemented in different cities and states were only the beginning, according to Tom Homan, President Trump’s border czar.

“There’s a lot of anxiety and a lot of uncertainty and the ink is not even dry on these executive orders,” New York City Mayor EricsAdams told Corona residents recently.

Responding to concerns that his administration would collaborate with ICE by allowing agents to carry out raids in New York schools, Adams said New York residents should continue to go about their daily lives.

“We are very clear, children should go to school. Those who need healthcare should go to hospitals. Those who are involved in any type of interaction where they’re victims of a crime, they should speak to the law enforcement agencies. We have maintained that over and over again,” Adams said.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two daily newspapers in Iloilo.—Ed)