Communities in Crisis: Interior Removals and Their Human Consequences

Communities in Crisis: Interior Removals and Their Human Consequences attempts to gauge the impact of deportations on individual immigrants and their family members. Researchers surveyed 133 deportees from the United States at a migrant shelter in Nogales, Mexico. All were Mexican nationals, all but one were men, and on average, they had lived in the U.S. for about 20 years. Among significant findings were the following: more than half had entered the U.S. as minors (below age 18); almost all had been employed in the U.S. (with an average of 10 years in the same job and earning an average of about $2,800 a month); nearly half said they had not been convicted of a crime prior to deportation (others were convicted of a traffic or immigration offense); a high percentage (65.2 percent) reported that their deportation began with a police arrest; most left citizen spouses and children behind in the U.S. who were experiencing severe financial hardship in their absence; and three-quarters reported that they planned to return to the U.S. The report’s authors make a series of recommendations to different stakeholders (Department of Homeland Security, Congress, state and local police, and to faith communities) to mitigate the “harsh consequences” of U.S. deportation policy and “to promote the integrity of families and communities.” For example, the authors urge Homeland Security to issue prosecutorial discretion guidelines to spare immigrants without criminal records and those with U.S. family members from deportation; they urge Congress to pass legislation to reduce family-based visa backlogs and to align immigration policy with the nation’s “economic, family, and humanitarian interests;” they urge local police to limit collaboration with ICE; and they urge faith communities “to advocate for the generous exercise of prosecutorial discretion; humane enforcement policies that prioritize family unity and cohesive communities; expanded legal avenues to regularized status; and strong citizenship policies.” (American Immigrant Policy Portal)

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