EMILY GILL

The Trump administration claims that the people that ICE stops and detains for investigation and possible expulsion from the U.S. are criminals, “the worst of the worst.” This claim may be comforting to people who prefer to look away from the unpalatable policies of the current regime. But the reality is quite different, and more people need to understand it.

First, entering or living in the country without documentation is not a crime, but a civil offense. The Trump administration wants to demonstrate the prosecution and expulsion of large numbers of immigrants. It could not do this if it focused only on those with serious criminal records. Therefore, it pushes the idea that the violation of immigration law constitutes a crime and claims that it has deported only criminal elements. Moreover, immigration officials possess a good deal of discretion in determining if a noncitizen is a community threat.

Second, ICE is detaining people who are green card holders, or legal permanent residents of the U.S. In one case, the mother in a family of five returning from vacation in Cancun, Mexico, in August was pulled aside and detained in Boston on their return. Born in Peru, she has been a legal permanent resident since she was 9 (34 years); the others in the family are citizens. After about two weeks in facilities in Massachusetts and a women’s jail in Maine, she was released in Massachusetts in the rain without phone or money; a kindly person at a nearby mall let her call her family. Sometimes green card holders discover that minor, long-ago offenses such as traffic violations or marijuana charges are cited as justifications for detention and possible expulsion. This woman was never told why she was detained, but the Department of Homeland Security later revealed a conviction for possessing a controlled substance in 2003.

Third, individuals who appear for a green card application or an interview about an asylum claim or visa may risk being taken into custody. People are frequently held for weeks in harsh conditions without being told why or what recourse they might have. The Constitution’s 14th Amendment affords due process of law to all persons in the U.S., not just citizens. A Canadian citizen arrived in California in March to finalize a work visa and start a new job at a U.S. company. She had crossed the border many times and had had her visa questioned several times, but she was never arrested before. This time she was put in a holding cell and transferred in shackles to San Diego and then Arizona. She was released after 12 days and may not return to the U.S. for five years. If she were not white and a native English speaker with friends in Los Angeles, her ordeal might have lasted much longer.

Fourth, ICE is also conducting violent arrests, with masked and unidentifiable individuals pulling people screaming from cars and day care centers and holding people without definite reasons for indeterminate periods of time. Records show that nearly 60,000 people were in immigration detention at the end of this September. The Department of Homeland Security reports that 70% of arrests have targeted criminals. The Migration Policy Institute and other groups, however, found that 71.5% of these people had no criminal record, and the others may have only been on record for something like driving with a broken taillight.

Nation states are entitled to control their borders and to monitor those who enter. They are not entitled to broaden the criminal category arbitrarily to enmesh more people in their nets and to deprive those targeted of the opportunity to contest their status. The U.S. is creating a climate of fear, encouraging noncitizens to leave and seeding anxiety in all immigrants who simply want to go about their daily lives unmolested. Although it has not always lived up to its aspirations, the U.S. has historically held itself out as a haven like no other. We should be ashamed of the immigration policies of the current regime.