Where Are My Parents? ICE in America
Article By: Genevieve Leung / Graphic By: Naya Moukabary
Is a father trying to provide for his family a criminal? Is a field worker who works long hours to give his family a better life a criminal? Since the 1800s, America has had over eighty million immigrants build, shape, and make this country. And currently, America has fifty-three million immigrants. Eighty million immigrants from around the world have traveled to America to experience the “American dream”, but in 2026, the Trump Administration views their aspirations, hopes, and dreams of a better life as a threat to our society.
In the past year, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has deported 600,000 people, but only 6% of those people were serious offenders. Within the six percent of serious offenders, 752 were convicted felons for homicide, and 1,693 people were convicted of sexual assault. Even if an ICE agent deported 1,000 undocumented migrants, could they really say they made our society safer? In contrast to the six percent of convicted criminals that have been detained and deported, in 2025, ICE detained over 600 legal U.S. citizens, and there are currently 170 citizens in an ICE detention center.
While deportation statistics reveal the scale of ICE’s apprehensions, they do not show what happens to the detainees in the detention facilities. 2025 was reported to be the deadliest year for those in ICE custody. These detention centers have experienced an overwhelming increase in detainees, resulting in overcrowding, lack of food, and many medical issues. A New York Times article discussed who is providing medical care for the detainees. The article focused on private prison company CoreCivic, a company infamous for falsifying medical records of its patients. Since 2016, CoreCivic has been accused of not giving detainees their proper medications. These allegations haven’t been proven, but in dozens of immigrant cases, their lawyers have come forth to prove the unsanitary conditions of the facilities.
Not only do detainees experience horrific conditions in the detention centers, but they also endure a rigorous and long legal process to prove their citizenship. ICE is legally allowed to hold the detainees for up to 48 hours while they transfer the person to a detention facility. Next, a bond hearing is held to determine whether the person can be released on bond, depending on their history with immigration and law enforcement. The last legal step is a removal hearing in immigration court. Although visa holders and permanent residents are entitled to a removal hearing as well as the right to have an attorney present, almost none have the right to a court-appointed attorney.
Although in prior years 50% of detainees were granted a removal hearing, in 2025 those numbers have significantly dropped. At the start of Donald Trump's term, only 12% were granted a hearing; now it is 29%. In 2025, more than 200,000 cases have been dismissed by immigration judges because the Department of Homeland Security has failed to file the detainees' Notice of Appearance to the court. Unfortunately, this led to hundreds of people having to start the legal process over because they were denied the right to a removal hearing even if they qualified for one. To date, over 3 million immigrant cases are still open. In 2026, only 26.7% of immigrants, including unaccompanied children, had an attorney present at their hearing. This means that nearly 75% of immigrants fighting deportation had no legal representation at removal proceedings.
Deportation cases being neglected, combined with the government’s lack of oversight of private detention centers, underscores the Administration's callous disregard for the rights of immigrants. Millions of immigrants have made America great, but now they fear being torn apart from their families. Fathers, mothers, children, and grandparents are all fighting for their safety. People who have worked hard to be here, living the “American Dream,” shouldn’t have to fear being separated indefinitely from their families just for their cases to be neglected.
Sources
https://www.ice.gov/about-ice
https://www.ice.gov/detention-facilities
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/promise-remove-worst-worst-ice-arrested-only-6-known-immigrant-murdere-rcna214817
https://tracreports.org/immigration/quickfacts/eoir.html
https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/blog/ice-deaths-shootings-2026/
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2026/jan/04/ice-2025-deaths-timeline
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/a-look-at-shootings-by-federal-immigration-officers
