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Latino Migrants in the USA: Between Fear and Hope

HAVANA TIMES – A friend of mine—a prominent professional and a US citizen—stopped by to visit me in Miami and shared a detail that struck me. When he told his wife he would be in South Florida, she asked him to bring his United States passport along… just in case. “What if you get stopped by ICE agents?” she asked. It has reached a point where traveling within the United States has become a risk for Latinos, for those of us who speak English with an accent, or simply for anyone whom immigration authorities might perceive as a foreigner.

ICE—the dreaded immigration police—has changed its tactics for detaining undocumented immigrants, as well as those currently in the process of regularizing their immigration status. In the past, they operated in a highly visible, aggressive manner, with clear abuses of authority. A quick search on YouTube or social media reveals countless examples of violent raids and the separation of families in places like Minneapolis and Los Angeles. But the backlash was so intense that they were forced to temporarily pull back from the streets.

Now, they operate quietly

They check your license plate; if the registration indicates you were born in another country, they pull you over on a deserted street corner—or at a gas station, a laundromat, or even as you’re leaving the supermarket. I know people who are now afraid to........

© Havana Times