Migrants in New York City Live in Fear of Deportation Raids
ICE raid in NYC, U.S., Feb. 2025. X/ @verainstitute
February 5, 2025 Hour: 2:09 pm
Uncertainty and anxiety of ICE raids explain the decline in the presence of street vendors and day laborers.
Raids launched by U.S. President Donald Trump have created unrest in the streets of New York City, where thousands of immigrants survive by selling food, working as day laborers, delivering food to homes, or performing other jobs that U.S. citizens do not want to do.
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Uncertainty, anxiety, and fear of raids by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) explain the decline in the presence of street vendors and day laborers in different neighborhoods. Many others, however, continue with their rutines, risking going out with the hope that “La Migra” does not show up.
“There is a lot of fear, but the need is greater,” says a 47-year-old Mexican man who goes out every day looking for work as a construction laborer. He prefers not to give his name to avoid being identified.
“I pay US$1,500 for this shop and another US$1,500 for my home rent,” says another migrant, referring to a small shop where he sells flowers. He is worried because his residency document has expired, and he is waiting for immigration authorities to renew it.
“They said they would arrest those who have committed a crime, but I have never had a problem. Let them take us if they can. What are we supposed to do?” says a migrant woman who sells tamales in the Latino neighborhood of Harlem.
Street vendors are also becoming scarce these days. It is estimated that NYC has about 23,000 street vendors, most of whom come from countries such as Mexico, Ecuador, Egypt, and Senegal. Approximately 57% of them are undocumented, according to a recent survey published by TheCity.nyc.
Other immigrants earn their living as day laborers, gathering daily at bus stops, gas stations, or commercial establishments in search of temporary jobs in construction, moving services, home cleaning, or yard work.
Catholic Charities operates two centers in the Bronx and Yonkers, offering them services. According to Lucia Goyen, who manages these centers, migrant workers are showing up much less frequently at the usual places where they wait to be hired for temporary jobs.
Since President Trump’s inauguration on January 20, “there is more fear and fewer people,” she said, mentioning that abuses against the migrant population have also increased.
Another consequence of the raids is that migrants are afraid to go to court when they are victims of discrimination or wage theft. “They don’t want to pursue their cases for fear of ICE. They know they have rights, but they don’t want to fight for them,” Goyen states.
Fear and insecurity are also shared by food delivery workers, a labor group that played a crucial role in daily survival during the COVID-19 pandemic. “People don’t gather to talk like they used to. Everyone keeps to themselves. There is fear that ICE will notice them and detain them,” said Guatemalan Gustavo Ajche, founder of Deliveristas Unidos.
“We delivery workers look out for each other and stay in touch through WhatsApp groups,” said Antonio, a food delivery worker, who mentioned that his group is afraid to go to court when they receive a fine. They also do not trust the police when they see them.
teleSUR/ JF Source: EFE