Nina To/The Cougar
“Protect our children” is a common phrase used in government policy and legislation: an objective to keep children in the U.S. safe from potentially harmful influences. This phrase is meant to reassure people that our government cares about youth and wants what is best for them.
This terminology and message have been awfully hypocritical lately, as our government shows no care for the kids being affected by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Their well-being isn’t accounted for if they are the children of immigrants or immigrants themselves. The government is picking and choosing whom to protect and whom to neglect.
Immigration enforcement by the Trump administration
Mass deportations of undocumented immigrants are a primary focus for the current administration and have been since President Donald Trump took office. He often mentioned it during his campaign and is aggressively enforcing it.
On social media, Trump and the White House have made multiple posts regarding mass deportations in a harmful way. They post memes and use unprofessional rhetoric, which shows they don’t care about immigrants. These posts are inhumane and cause incredible fear and anxiety across immigrant communities.
ICE has been present and active in every single state this year. Their raids have been aggressive, traumatizing, created casualties and disrupted many communities nationwide.
ICE presence at schools
ICE raids have also caused significant disruption in schools. In areas where ICE is actively present, school attendance has fallen dramatically due to fear. Immigrant families are scared that they will be separated from one another if they send their children to school.
There have been reports of ICE raids near schools and reports of school administrations having to let students know their parents had been detained by ICE.
“Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest,” said a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson in January 2025.
These raids negatively affect the overall well-being of children and harm their academic potential. They are dealing with emotions and anxiety that no child should face. There is a constant worry that they could see their loved ones being taken away or that they themselves will be taken away.
Schools are supposed to be places where kids can feel safe and protected. They are supposed to be welcomed with open hearts and feel a sense of belonging.
Now, they’re staying home because they are afraid that they will be targeted or their loved ones will be taken away while they’re gone. In a school district in Charlotte, North Carolina, more than 30,000 students didn’t attend school due to ICE raids in the area.
No protection for children from ICE
Children don’t understand why immigrants are being detained; they only see the people in their lives whom they trust and love being taken away from them. It’s terrifying.
To make matters worse, they have started detaining children for more than 20 days and holding them at ICE detention facilities. Harmless children are being surrounded by grown adults watching their every move.
The government is pushing harder than ever for the deportation of undocumented immigrants. They aren’t taking into account the trauma ICE raids create for people who are targeted.
The administration says they care about the children in the nation, yet they are encouraging these hostile disruptions to their lives. They don’t care that ICE raids are causing so much terror among kids that they can’t attend school. They are no longer receiving a proper education. They also don’t care that these kids fear every other aspect of their lives.
Our children are our future, and these deportation policies are leaving them confused and traumatized. This country was created by immigrants, yet our administration is failing them. These deportation policies and ICE raids are inhumane.
Protect the children, they say.
opinion@thedailycougar.com
