The Reality for Immigrants Through Their Advocates’ Insights

Immigration Customs and Enforcement and Border Patrol agents raided a food production facility in Cato in early September. (Emily Kenny / Spectrum News 1 photo)

Link to Spectrum News 1: https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/central-ny/politics/2025/09/29/the-reality-of-immigrants-through-their-advocates--insights

In the first months of the Trump administration, the country has witnessed a tightened grip on immigration. There has been a greater presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), large-scale deportation goals and policies to revoke status from individuals who have long maintained it.

Immigrants are living in fear, local advocates said, seen as tally marks on the administration’s checklist, not individuals with human rights. 

“What we are talking about here is not numbers, not statistics, but people, mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, coworkers and friends,” said Ana Menez-Vasquez, Western New York regional coordinator for Rural and Migrant Ministry.

According to the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute, during Donald Trump’s first presidential term, around 1.5 million immigrant repatriations were carried out. Under the Biden administration, from 2021 to 2025, there were 4.4 million repatriations. A large percentage of this number can be credited to 3 million expulsions under the pandemic-era Title 42 order. President Obama's eight years in office saw a total of 2.7 million deportations — more than any other president in U.S. history. Yet, President Trump is now challenging this high. 

In the first eight months of Trump’s current presidency, the administration has recorded 2 million deportations — around 5% more people than his first term. Such rapid removals align with a central promise made during Trump’s 2024 campaign to carry out the largest domestic deportation operation in American history. The majority of repatriations include immigrants who have chosen to self deport. Advocates say that many have chosen that path out of fear and that immigration has shifted dramatically under the Trump administration. 

“We used to have our rights and the rights of our clients, being able to enforce them with ICE or with any agency. Now they are violating all our clients' rights, not only under the Immigration and Nationality Act but under the Constitution,” said Syracuse-based immigration lawyer Jose Perez. 

Perez, who continues to represent several local people in immigration cases, said even though it is illegal for law enforcement to racially profile, federal agents still are.

“The most important thing right now is to understand that we're in a climate where the rights of individuals that are not from the United States and that look different are being questioned,” said Perez. “We need immigration reform. We don't need [to be] rounding up people by the look of them, or by nationality, accent, or different cultural backgrounds.” 

Jose Perez, an immigration lawyer based in Syracuse, stands for a portrait in his office. (Emily Kenny/Spectrum News 1)

The Supreme Court, however, recently paused a ruling after the Trump administration’s request, allowing agents at immigration raids across Los Angeles to racially profile who they decide to stop. 

Federal initiatives feel extremely targeted, Perez said. The halt on issuance of worker visas and the tightened requirements regarding the English Language Proficiency (ELP) for commercial truck drivers, are two of many. 

While a raid earlier this month at the Nutrition Bar Confectioners factory has grabbed headlines, Marc Alessi, an organizer for the Syracuse Immigrant and Refugee Defense Network, said ICE is active all over – including Syracuse. 

“I mean, it's kind of happening all over the place. And that's of course, because ICE's budget was just tripled in the latest, by Congress, so they now have all the resources and manpower to do things like this all the time,” Alessi said at a recent immigration rally in Fulton.

Federal officials have said that anyone in the U.S. without proper documentation are breaking the law and are therefore criminals. A spokesperson for the agency said the enforcement of policies is an effort to protect public safety and combat the “undermining of the American labor market." 

“The employment of illegal aliens also incentivizes dangerous and illegal practices, including Social Security fraud. As we saw during a recent worksite operation in Nebraska, many illegal aliens use stolen Social Security numbers and identities to unlawfully obtain wages, health benefits and employment authorization. Behind every stolen Social Security number uncovered these operations is a real American — mothers, fathers, students, and disabled workers — now facing devastating financial, emotional, and legal fallout,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

None of the 57 workers detained in the Cato raid are accused of using stolen Social Security numbers.

Yet, Perez echoed sentiments from Alessi and other advocates, saying that despite the actions a person takes, ICE agents may still detain them. 

Melina Ivanchikova stood in Voorhees Park in Fulton during the Cato raid rally. Ivanchikova, an organizer with Finger Lakes Rapid Response, translated a statement on behalf of a mother whose son was recently taken by ICE.

“My son had his papers and his work permit in order, but they aren't allowing that anymore,” said the mother’s statement. “We feel fear every day. We are asking what is going to happen tomorrow, and we feel even more sad. Nobody was even doing anything wrong.”

With grit in her voice, Jessica Maxwell, director of the Workers Center of Central New York, clutched the microphone that she held stiff to her chest. 

“We are seeing workers living in fear and this includes not just undocumented workers, [but also] workers

with valid working papers,” said Maxwell. “This is really sending shock waves, so that now we are having people call saying, ‘I thought I would stay, but now I don't know. I have my working papers, but now I'm not sure that's enough. I don't know what to do.’ This is the kind of chaos that the community is dealing with.”

Even weeks after the Cato raid, immigrants in the area are traumatized, these local advocates said. They are now less likely to seek medical care, go to work and connect with their neighbors, regardless of their status. 

“The raid at Cato Nutri-Bar did not just remove workers from a factory floor, it ripped open the fabric of our community,” said Menez-Vasquez. 

As an immigration attorney, Perez emphasized the importance of knowing your rights regardless of your status as an immigrant in America. Under the Constitution, even noncitizens have the right to remain silent and refuse search, unless authorities have reasonable suspicion. 

“Personal rights, human rights, immigration rights. Anything that you can think of ICE is violating right now,” said Perez. “Every single law that is in the books protecting someone not to be harassed, stereotyped, detained for reasons that are unlawful. We have situations in which U.S. citizens that speak with an accent, just like myself, have to tell ICE ‘I am citizen, and I know my rights.’”

While Perez has taken on many immigration cases in Central New York, overall, there aren’t enough resources.  

“There is a lack of attorneys, not only in the area, but I would say, of the whole [state] of New York,” he said. “We have very limited attorneys that do immigration, and only a handful that speak Spanish. I'm the only one in the Syracuse area that speaks Spanish and does immigration.” Immigrants typically have an incredibly hard time finding legal representation. Not only is there a shortage of immigration attorneys, but financial barriers and restricted communications at ICE facilities for detainees, including minimal to no phone, mail and email access.

In body camera footage from the Cato raid, a federal agent discussed the lack of access to the outside world for people in detention centers.

“I would not let anybody out of their cells, so we did it in an orderly fashion, had them all lined up. It’s bathroom time, or it’s f— brush your teeth time, or it’s food time. Other than that, nope, your a— is staying in there. ‘But you can’t do that.’ I absolutely can. ‘I need a phone call.’ No, you don’t. ‘I need to go to medical.’ Nope, you look good to me,” the agent in the video said, mimicking a conversation with a person detained.  

Maxwell, her boots dug into the park grass, continued to speak with frustration.

“We need justice from the immigration courts. We are tired of this kangaroo court where you don't even have access to lawyers,” Maxwell added.  

The immigrant communities that make up America no longer feel as safe as they once did, advocates said. 

“We have witnessed the deep fear and humiliation caused when people are treated as disposable rather than as human beings. This is not about politics. This is about humanity,” said Menez-Vasquez. “Every single person deserves dignity, respect and safety. No family should have to live with the trauma of separation. No child should have to wonder if their parent will disappear overnight. We will not stand by while our neighbors are targeted or racially profiled and fear is weaponized while families are torn apart. We are here to say it's we, not they. We demand accountability. We demand compassion and we demand justice.” 

ABIGAIL LUCA - SPECTRUM NEWS FELLOW

Abigail Luca is a senior pursuing a dual major in Magazine, News, Digital Journalism, and Creative Writing at Syracuse University. She is an Editorial Fellow for Spectrum News 1. She is also the Managing Copy Editor and Head Writer at University Girl, a campus publication, and a freelance journalist.