ICE raids spook foreign-born Desis

Rupal Parikh, an immigration attorney based in Montclair, has seen an influx of calls since Jan. 20. Foreign-born visa holders, undocumented people and even naturalized citizens are worried about continuing their daily lives under the looming threat of deportation.

As U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids stoke fear and uncertainty in New Jersey’s Desi community, the majority of which is foreign-born, Parikh and other local lawyers, nonprofits and advocacy groups are stepping up to provide resources, fight misinformation and take legislative action. 

“My phones were already ringing before his inauguration, but since [Pres. Donald] Trump returned to office, his rhetoric has fostered a culture of fear throughout the immigrant communities,” Parikh said. 

Parikh is ramping up her client intake. She says she’s received calls from people who just want to give their information to a lawyer in case they’re detained — to have someone in their corner who’s aware of the law. 

ICE raids have already started impacting communities in New Jersey. A raid at a Newark warehouse earlier this year sparked backlash from Mayor Ras Baraka and immigration advocates after ICE agents detained three undocumented workers and questioned U.S. citizens. 

The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey has received reports of ICE agents showing up to homes, apartment complexes, businesses and workplaces across the state. 

“We’ve been anticipating how Trump could harm our communities,” said Amol Sinha, executive director of the ACLU-NJ. “We knew if Trump followed through on the promises he made on the campaign trail, he would try to deport as many people as possible. We knew we would see increased ICE presence and more frequent raids.”

While the organization doesn’t know whether Desis have been picked up in the New Jersey raids, South Asians have been the target of deportations in other parts of the country. In February, more than 100 undocumented Indians were deported from Texas to New Delhi on a military plane.

With Indians making up the third largest undocumented group in the U.S., behind Mexico and El Salvador, Trump’s deportation plans stand to have a huge impact on the South Asian community. 

Tackling misinformation 

There is a lot of misinformation spreading about the current situation. Parikh spoke with one naturalized U.S. citizen who was worried about re-entering the country after traveling abroad. Other clients have expressed being scared to go to the grocery store or work. 

“A great deal of anxiety has been stirred up, and I believe that was the intended goal all along,” Parikh said.

The Biden administration deported the largest number of undocumented immigrants in nearly a decade, even more than the first Trump administration. Still, Parikh says seeing the current administration expand its scope of immigration enforcement has ratcheted up the fear. 

“This Trump administration is smarter and more dead set on achieving its agenda than the previous one,” Sinha said. “There are real loyalists around him and people saying things that are very concerning.” 

At the Conservative Political Action Conference last month, Trump’s border czar Tom Homan said it’s “game on” for sanctuary cities, or cities that limit their cooperation with federal immigration enforcement agents. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem released an ad last week telling people who are here illegally to “leave now” otherwise they will “find you and deport you.” 

Beyond news about immigration crackdowns, social media has allowed misinformation to spread quickly as people seek answers. Unfounded posts about ICE raids can do more harm than good, warns Lavanya Raghavan, a board member for AAPI NJ. 

“The most important thing is to be calm and give the facts,” Raghavan said. “It’s very important to verify information about ICE raids before posting it.” 

Fighting for new legislation 

Advocacy groups are also pursuing legislative action to protect migrant communities from the threat of deportation. On Feb. 18, the ACLU-NJ led a day of action at New Jersey’s state house to lobby lawmakers to pass the Immigration Trust Act. 

If passed, the proposed legislation would create new data privacy protections for undocumented people. It would further divide state and federal agencies — preventing personal information from being shared by local and state agencies, universities and healthcare systems to the federal government. 

But even if passed, there is still the possibility of retaliation from the White House. The Trump administration has taken action against states for not complying with federal immigration authorities. The Department of Justice sued the state of Illinois in February for its bipartisan law that limits how state law enforcement interacts with ICE. Mayors from Boston, Chicago, Denver and New York are also set to appear in front of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Wednesday over their sanctuary city policies.

The New Jersey bill has sat in committee since it was introduced last August, but advocates say it’s crucial to pass now. 

“Under the Immigrant Trust Act, New Jersey law enforcement will no longer use local resources to funnel people into ICE custody – a practice that disproportionately harms Black and brown communities,” ACLU-NJ Campaign Strategist Ami Kachalia said in a statement. 

Providing resources

The New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice and other advocacy groups have released “Know Your Rights” cards that explain what to do in an ICE encounter. They have published cards in multiple languages, including Hindi and Gujarati.   

“The federal government does have the right to deport people, but they can’t do it without due process,” Sinha said.

Although the recent actions feel sudden to many, advocacy groups have been preparing for this moment for a long time.

“We’ve been ready for it, but that doesn’t discount the harm,” he said. “We will continue to build the power we need to push back every step of the way.”

Zoya Wazir is a 2024-25 reporting fellow at Central Desi. She also works as a production assistant at NBC News NOW, NBC News' streaming platform.

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