"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
“Not a single one of these aliens asserted fear of returning to their home country at any point during processing or custody,” said a Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman.”
We obviously don’t - and will never know - the facts. I guess we are expected to believe that.
yep, during the times of our open borders, that was the welcoming cry. 2 of my grandparents on my dad's side, before they met, came from Russia, thru Ellis Island, were "processed", changed their last names, learned English as quickly as possible & tried their best to assimilate because that was important to them. Our country was empty. Our country needed more people.
“Though this hybrid umpire system won’t make its way to regular season major league games in 2025, player and fan reactions during this crucial trial period could determine whether or not it becomes a regular staple in games.”
the link re: "They Asked for Help to Escape the Nazis. Their Pleas Went Unanswered"
Lindwer said it’s not hard to make a comparison between the difficulties faced by refugees in the 1930s, and those who are trying to escape persecution in their home countries today. “This refugee problem is a problem of our times,” he said, “and with the chaos we have in the world today, I’m afraid it will only get worse.”
I beg to differ on that quoted opinion. Today is very different. First of all our country is now more populated, w/ many more illegals having crossed over in the last several years. Our country is broke. It can be proven that resources go to providing schooling, hospital provisions, community center sources to many of those. It's NOT fear or hatred, it's a drain, which should be given to legal citizens. Yes, there are refugees wanting to escape persecution, but it CANNOT compare to the Nazis, not at all. And as the article clearly states, the US along w/ many other countries refused those requesting persecution from the Nazis during those times. And in addition to that, our country has legal ways for processing refugees now.
a story - I might have told this before; sorry if it's a repeat here. When I traveled to China our tour guide was absolutely marvelous!! He was also quite honest about telling us of the Chinese gov's propaganda. One of my sons married a Chinese woman; her parents left China about 35 yrs prior to the time I was there. I told him about that & asked his thoughts. He said it was nice for them, but what would happen to his country if everyone who didn't like how the government ran things left? There wouldn't be anyone remaining to try to make it better.
again, NO comparison between Nazis during that time & the majority of refugees now.
I just read this in the NYT. Since I’m not on twitter does anyone know if it is true?
“After a judge blocked a Trump executive order, Elon Musk shared a post with his more than 200 million followers on X that included the judge’s daughter’s name, photo and job, allegedly at the Department of Education. There’s no indication he got access to government databases about her, but how would we know if he had, or if he does so in the future?“
As I previously commented, I'm suspended on X. However, I leveraged Grok, the X AI to get the following. Maybe Grok will get fired next.
"Yes, Elon Musk has been accused of doxxing a judge's daughter. In February 2025, Musk reposted content on X from journalist Laura Loomer that included personal information about Catherine McConnell, the daughter of U.S. District Judge John McConnell Jr. The information shared included her name, photo, job details as a Senior Advisor at the Department of Education, and a financial disclosure form. This action followed Judge McConnell's ruling to unfreeze federal grants to the Department of Education, a decision that conflicted with efforts by Musk and the Trump administration to cut federal spending. Critics labeled this as doxxing—sharing private or identifying information with potentially malicious intent—pointing to Musk's massive audience of over 217 million followers on X as amplifying the exposure. Musk accompanied the repost with an eyebrow-raised emoji, which some interpreted as an attempt to draw attention to a perceived conflict of interest, though it sparked significant backlash for privacy invasion and intimidation. While Musk has not been legally charged as of the current date, February 21, 2025, the incident has fueled debates about his influence and the boundaries of public disclosure."
I'm a fan of Doge and all that could be accomplished. It's too bad the Limelight has spoiled Musk in this way. Just proves how power corrupts. Hopefully the people at Tesla, SpaceX, boring, and neuralink can keep it together.
There is a right way and a wrong way. Willy nilly with no plan and inexperienced staff is clearly the wrong way.
Someone that already $400+ million in government contracts and runs a social media network shouldn’t have access to all our personal and private information and certainly not access to all of his competitor’s info, bidding processes and other competitor confidential information. There has to be planning and accountability. Musk has demonstrated he cannot be trusted with confidential information. Who is holding musk accountable…trump?
While the phrase 'don't throw the baby out with the bathwater' comes to mind, it's also true that DOGE presents a unique opportunity. It holds potential to address some of the systemic issues within the Federal Government that Congress and past administrations have struggled to resolve. We've seen efforts from both sides of the aisle to tackle these challenges, often using traditional Washington approaches. However, the current situation suggests those methods haven't yielded the desired results. Therefore, exploring alternative solutions like those pursued by DOGE deserves careful consideration, even while acknowledging the need for a balanced approach.
It's clear that a 'wrecking ball' approach is seen as necessary by many because we aren't living in a balanced world, especially in Washington. We're in an era of extremes. The calls for a return to previous leadership reflect a widespread feeling that the pendulum has swung too far in one direction. Many people, perhaps a majority, would likely support a more balanced approach: fiscal responsibility, reasonable policies on issues like late-term abortions, sensible healthcare and inclusion policies, and equal rights for transgender individuals. Certain policies have been pushed to extremes which has undeniably contributed to the current political climate and the desire for drastic change.
The suggestion that younger individuals are inherently less capable when it comes to technology or trustworthiness is blatant ageism. I myself started as a young 'hacker' and built that foundation into a long and successful IT career. IT, by its very nature, demands immense trust, as administrators have access to virtually every part of a system. We need the most talented and intelligent individuals, regardless of age, to quickly and securely modernize these systems that have been neglected for too long.
I hope Elon finds the maturity necessary to now own up to his errors, right the ship and carry on the good work.
“Therefore, exploring alternative solutions like those pursued by DOGE deserves careful consideration, even while acknowledging the need for a balanced approach.”
And that’s what is not happening. And I sure don’t want hackers who haven’t yet built a career fixing our system regardless of their age. One of them has a quite interesting social media presence. “Think of Big Balls” and all the racist and misogynistic posts he has made.
You obviously are enjoying the koolaide so this is rather pointless.
I understand your reticence to avoid politics, but someone must speak up for the vulnerable. I appreciate your juxtaposition with what happened in wwii.
Wonderful article. I especially appreciated this line:
“But I’ll be damned if I’m going to stand by or remain silent during this hostile takeover of our government and its rejection of what makes America a special place. There’s the America I know and love—and then there’s Trump’s America. I will keep looking for signs of opposition, from wherever in the world there are pro-democracy humans who see and reject what’s happening here.”
Its exhausting and I know, I don't need to respond. The constant name calling, Yes labeling someone a fascist is name calling. Aligning someone to Nazism is name calling and diminishes the horror of that evil.
For shame on those who do it.
There are more intellectual and reasoned ways to debate the void between conservative and liberal idealism.
Let's leave the rhetoric and baiting to the politicians. Discuss the fact and merit of changes and stop villainizing people.
I've been to Greenville several times. It's a beautiful area.
Unfortunately, I have other commitments over the coming months, a lengthy trip in that direction isn't feasible.
While we may disagree, I believe we can continue our online interactions with civility. It's crucial to acknowledge that the strength of an idea isn't tied to the person expressing it. My online presence, whether anonymous or not, doesn't change the underlying logic of my points.
the post about being trapped in Panama Hotel made me think of another reporters article I recently read. A "bit" biased imo. I put in ( ) leading to my assertion it was biased:
Biased misleading ICE fears reporting
ICE fears affecting children’s routines
Elementary school kids, parents avoid campus
Emiliano Tahui Gómez
Austin American-Statesman USA TODAY NETWORK
Maribel Galvanez isn’t particularly scared of the recent federal immigration detentions that have ramped up in Austin, and across the country, under the Trump administration. She and her young son, who moved to Austin from Honduras three years ago, both have visas. (so there's no reason for her to fear)
But despite those legal protections, Galvanez has opted to drive her second grader to Fanny M. Andrews Elementary over the past three weeks rather than put him on the bus where she fears he might (he MIGHT) witness an immigration arrest or overhear constant chatter about deportations from his classmates.
“They’re too small to see those things,” Galvanez said in Spanish by phone. “He wouldn’t know what to make of it.”
Galvanez is one of many Andrews parents who have changed their habits in recent weeks in response to the uncertainties brought by President Donald Trump’s heavily publicized immigration crackdown and the arrival of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement “enhanced targeted operations” in Austin.
Some have taken more dramatic measures. The school — which mostly serves immigrants from Mexico, Central America and Afghanistan and where more than 3 in 4 students are considered English language learners — had pickup lines shrink and attendance plummet by about 50% during the week of Trump’s inauguration, according to Principal Audrey Guerrero.
Absences might have ticked up that week due to a holiday, a snow day and possibly some flu cases, (HOLIDAY, SNOW DAY FLU CASES) but Guerrero said she believes (believes) many families opted to keep their children home because they were scared of being detained (illegals).
The fear culminated one afternoon in late January when many families decided not to pick up their children right when school ended amid rumors (rumors) of immigration enforcement activity on nearby Cameron Road, according to several parents.
School staff members had to stay with the children until the evening, as cars trickled in.
“They’re afraid that something’s going to happen to them while their kids are at school, or that something’s going to happen to their kids at school,” Guerrero said.
Fear persists despite assurances from leaders
Austin city leaders have tried to assuage fears among the city’s immigrant communities. In a recent American-Statesman/KVUE interview, city leaders emphasized that ICE’s sweeps appear targeted at violent offenders and individuals with final deportation orders. ICE also has said it is focused on people with outstanding warrants.
Yet the scope of enforcement actions is largely still unknown, in part because of the lack of information shared by federal immigration officials.
Soon after Trump’s inauguration, ICE started posting national deportation totals on its X account every day that showed the agency was deporting double or triple the number of immigrants it did on a typical day last year under the Biden administration.
But those social media posts, already lacking detail about where exactly the deportations were occurring, stopped Feb. 1.
Amid the information vacuum, fears have grown and been further stoked by some evidence of larger and less targeted sweeps.
NBC News, citing an administration official, reported that about half the arrests on one day in January were of people without criminal records, meaning that they were only detained because they lacked legal authorization to be in the United States. (they were stopped for some reason & didn't have proof of legal authorization; they weren't stopped for no reason)
Workplace raids in other parts of the country, like New Jersey and Tennessee, appear to have resulted in arrests of individuals who did not commit any crimes and were only detained because they lacked legal authorization to reside in the United States.
In Austin, fear of wider sweeps has inspired advocates to organize countless “Know Your Rights” sessions, including at Catholic churches and small shops off North Lamar Boulevard, and it has led to a drop in business at food trailers and hair salons off Montopolis Boulevard.
The fear has been “undeniably disruptive” to education and community building, said Jose Carrasco, director of a family resource center that serves schools in North Austin.
During immigration scares like the one that happened at Andrews and elsewhere, students “are worried about ICE. They’re not worried about math class,” he said.
The sense of fear at Andrews does not appear to be an isolated case, he said. Carrasco, who works with Austin public schools just north of Andrews, said other nearby campuses and after-school programs have reported similar trends of lower attendance, and that many predominantly Hispanic schools have seen similar immigration scares during and after school.
The Austin school district did not provide school attendance figures in time for publication. However, the district published a video Feb. 3 on social media platforms that asked students to return to class.
“We’ve recently noticed a lot of empty desks in our classrooms,” Keith Moore, principal of Campbell Elementary School in East Austin, said in the video. “We miss you.”
Carrasco said he hopes students and parents will learn to not share information about immigration enforcement actions to avoid “feeding into the doom machine.” (yet this reporter is doing exactly that!) Yet, he said, it’s hard to completely negate a parent’s fear because of schools' lack of information.
“What they want to hear is that their kids are safe,” Carrasco said. And that’s a difficult guarantee to make, he said.
An immigration scare
On Jan. 26, the Sunday after Trump’s inauguration, Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis confirmed to the Statesman that ICE had started “enhanced targeted actions” in the city.
The news hit Andrews Elementary particularly hard. The next day, shortly before the school’s 3 p.m. pickup time, a parent called to say they had heard rumors of immigration agents nearby on Cameron Road. The news spread “like wildfire” among families, said Guerrero, the principal. The campus phone line rang with calls from distraught parents. Teachers tried their best to reassure kids who had seen the rumor through text messages and were afraid to board the bus.
School employees waited with about 10 children until the evening when families felt it was safer to show up on campus.
The week that followed “was spooky,” Guerrero said. “The buses didn’t have kids. There were no cars in the car line.”
Carmen, the grandmother of an Andrews preschool student, has continued to drive her grandson to campus each day, but she is well aware of the risks as an immigrant living in the U.S. without authorization (correct terminology: illegal. Not hated, not feared, but ILLEGAL).
The Statesman is withholding Carmen’s last name because of her legal status.
At times during the past week, Carmen has had her daughter, the boy’s aunt, drive him home. But Carmen still goes most of the time, concerned he will have to wait too long for his afternoon snack.
“You have to drive with more caution,” Carmen said.
The road ahead
On the Friday after the ICE scare at Andrews, about 30 parents crowded into a room for the school’s monthly coffee chat with the principal. Guerrero noticed she hadn’t seen many of them for days.
The parents asked about the district’s policy in dealing with immigration agents on campus. Others asked about the potential punishments for their children’s unexcused absences. Several began to cry.
The emotional meeting was one way Guerrero said that she tried to communicate to families “that I value them, that they are important to the school.”
Guerrero said attendance at Andrews bottomed out Feb. 3 when a loosely coordinated “Day without Immigrants” protest was held. One class had only two students.
In the past week, attendance has begun to return to preinauguration levels, Guerrero said. But she remains worried about what could happen in the coming months.
Luis, a father of two Andrews students who attended the Friday coffee chat, said that Guerrero offered some reassurance that the school would be able to look after students. But he believes he and other parents have resigned themselves to living their lives as normally as possible.
“When I go out, I don’t think of it,” said Luis, whose last name the Statesman is withholding due to his legal status. “I say, ‘They’re rumors. I have to go do things.’”
Martindale - idiot
THE NEW COLOSSUS
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
“Not a single one of these aliens asserted fear of returning to their home country at any point during processing or custody,” said a Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman.”
We obviously don’t - and will never know - the facts. I guess we are expected to believe that.
yep, during the times of our open borders, that was the welcoming cry. 2 of my grandparents on my dad's side, before they met, came from Russia, thru Ellis Island, were "processed", changed their last names, learned English as quickly as possible & tried their best to assimilate because that was important to them. Our country was empty. Our country needed more people.
I think the "teaser" snippet of article for the Robot Umpire is not correct. But it is interesting.
Did you read the article?
“Though this hybrid umpire system won’t make its way to regular season major league games in 2025, player and fan reactions during this crucial trial period could determine whether or not it becomes a regular staple in games.”
The link goes to the correct article. The description is from last week's entry at this same spot in the newsletter.
the link re: "They Asked for Help to Escape the Nazis. Their Pleas Went Unanswered"
Lindwer said it’s not hard to make a comparison between the difficulties faced by refugees in the 1930s, and those who are trying to escape persecution in their home countries today. “This refugee problem is a problem of our times,” he said, “and with the chaos we have in the world today, I’m afraid it will only get worse.”
I beg to differ on that quoted opinion. Today is very different. First of all our country is now more populated, w/ many more illegals having crossed over in the last several years. Our country is broke. It can be proven that resources go to providing schooling, hospital provisions, community center sources to many of those. It's NOT fear or hatred, it's a drain, which should be given to legal citizens. Yes, there are refugees wanting to escape persecution, but it CANNOT compare to the Nazis, not at all. And as the article clearly states, the US along w/ many other countries refused those requesting persecution from the Nazis during those times. And in addition to that, our country has legal ways for processing refugees now.
a story - I might have told this before; sorry if it's a repeat here. When I traveled to China our tour guide was absolutely marvelous!! He was also quite honest about telling us of the Chinese gov's propaganda. One of my sons married a Chinese woman; her parents left China about 35 yrs prior to the time I was there. I told him about that & asked his thoughts. He said it was nice for them, but what would happen to his country if everyone who didn't like how the government ran things left? There wouldn't be anyone remaining to try to make it better.
again, NO comparison between Nazis during that time & the majority of refugees now.
I own guns, as does my husband. I believe in training/permits.
I just read this in the NYT. Since I’m not on twitter does anyone know if it is true?
“After a judge blocked a Trump executive order, Elon Musk shared a post with his more than 200 million followers on X that included the judge’s daughter’s name, photo and job, allegedly at the Department of Education. There’s no indication he got access to government databases about her, but how would we know if he had, or if he does so in the future?“
As I previously commented, I'm suspended on X. However, I leveraged Grok, the X AI to get the following. Maybe Grok will get fired next.
"Yes, Elon Musk has been accused of doxxing a judge's daughter. In February 2025, Musk reposted content on X from journalist Laura Loomer that included personal information about Catherine McConnell, the daughter of U.S. District Judge John McConnell Jr. The information shared included her name, photo, job details as a Senior Advisor at the Department of Education, and a financial disclosure form. This action followed Judge McConnell's ruling to unfreeze federal grants to the Department of Education, a decision that conflicted with efforts by Musk and the Trump administration to cut federal spending. Critics labeled this as doxxing—sharing private or identifying information with potentially malicious intent—pointing to Musk's massive audience of over 217 million followers on X as amplifying the exposure. Musk accompanied the repost with an eyebrow-raised emoji, which some interpreted as an attempt to draw attention to a perceived conflict of interest, though it sparked significant backlash for privacy invasion and intimidation. While Musk has not been legally charged as of the current date, February 21, 2025, the incident has fueled debates about his influence and the boundaries of public disclosure."
Thank you for uncovering these details. Just what we feared and this is just the tip of the iceberg we can see.
I'm a fan of Doge and all that could be accomplished. It's too bad the Limelight has spoiled Musk in this way. Just proves how power corrupts. Hopefully the people at Tesla, SpaceX, boring, and neuralink can keep it together.
There is a right way and a wrong way. Willy nilly with no plan and inexperienced staff is clearly the wrong way.
Someone that already $400+ million in government contracts and runs a social media network shouldn’t have access to all our personal and private information and certainly not access to all of his competitor’s info, bidding processes and other competitor confidential information. There has to be planning and accountability. Musk has demonstrated he cannot be trusted with confidential information. Who is holding musk accountable…trump?
While the phrase 'don't throw the baby out with the bathwater' comes to mind, it's also true that DOGE presents a unique opportunity. It holds potential to address some of the systemic issues within the Federal Government that Congress and past administrations have struggled to resolve. We've seen efforts from both sides of the aisle to tackle these challenges, often using traditional Washington approaches. However, the current situation suggests those methods haven't yielded the desired results. Therefore, exploring alternative solutions like those pursued by DOGE deserves careful consideration, even while acknowledging the need for a balanced approach.
It's clear that a 'wrecking ball' approach is seen as necessary by many because we aren't living in a balanced world, especially in Washington. We're in an era of extremes. The calls for a return to previous leadership reflect a widespread feeling that the pendulum has swung too far in one direction. Many people, perhaps a majority, would likely support a more balanced approach: fiscal responsibility, reasonable policies on issues like late-term abortions, sensible healthcare and inclusion policies, and equal rights for transgender individuals. Certain policies have been pushed to extremes which has undeniably contributed to the current political climate and the desire for drastic change.
The suggestion that younger individuals are inherently less capable when it comes to technology or trustworthiness is blatant ageism. I myself started as a young 'hacker' and built that foundation into a long and successful IT career. IT, by its very nature, demands immense trust, as administrators have access to virtually every part of a system. We need the most talented and intelligent individuals, regardless of age, to quickly and securely modernize these systems that have been neglected for too long.
I hope Elon finds the maturity necessary to now own up to his errors, right the ship and carry on the good work.
You said:
“Therefore, exploring alternative solutions like those pursued by DOGE deserves careful consideration, even while acknowledging the need for a balanced approach.”
And that’s what is not happening. And I sure don’t want hackers who haven’t yet built a career fixing our system regardless of their age. One of them has a quite interesting social media presence. “Think of Big Balls” and all the racist and misogynistic posts he has made.
You obviously are enjoying the koolaide so this is rather pointless.
Spring Training story - HUH?
Happy Friday everyone!
The link goes to the correct article. The description is from last week's entry at this same spot in the newsletter.
I was so tired when I did that last night ... yeah, mistake!
I understand your reticence to avoid politics, but someone must speak up for the vulnerable. I appreciate your juxtaposition with what happened in wwii.
Who avoids politics? Bill doesn’t 😉
Passing this on from Steven Beschloss from his Substack, “America America”
https://open.substack.com/pub/america/p/rooting-against-trumps-america?r=np4n&utm_medium=ios
Wonderful article. I especially appreciated this line:
“But I’ll be damned if I’m going to stand by or remain silent during this hostile takeover of our government and its rejection of what makes America a special place. There’s the America I know and love—and then there’s Trump’s America. I will keep looking for signs of opposition, from wherever in the world there are pro-democracy humans who see and reject what’s happening here.”
Its exhausting and I know, I don't need to respond. The constant name calling, Yes labeling someone a fascist is name calling. Aligning someone to Nazism is name calling and diminishes the horror of that evil.
For shame on those who do it.
There are more intellectual and reasoned ways to debate the void between conservative and liberal idealism.
Let's leave the rhetoric and baiting to the politicians. Discuss the fact and merit of changes and stop villainizing people.
This isn’t a place for debate. In person is debate territory when I can reckon with the person behind the anonymity. Come see me.
Will you be in the Chicagoland area any time soon? I like Chipotle. I'll even buy.
Come down to Greenville. We have Chipotles here as well.
I've been to Greenville several times. It's a beautiful area.
Unfortunately, I have other commitments over the coming months, a lengthy trip in that direction isn't feasible.
While we may disagree, I believe we can continue our online interactions with civility. It's crucial to acknowledge that the strength of an idea isn't tied to the person expressing it. My online presence, whether anonymous or not, doesn't change the underlying logic of my points.
the post about being trapped in Panama Hotel made me think of another reporters article I recently read. A "bit" biased imo. I put in ( ) leading to my assertion it was biased:
Biased misleading ICE fears reporting
ICE fears affecting children’s routines
Elementary school kids, parents avoid campus
Emiliano Tahui Gómez
Austin American-Statesman USA TODAY NETWORK
Maribel Galvanez isn’t particularly scared of the recent federal immigration detentions that have ramped up in Austin, and across the country, under the Trump administration. She and her young son, who moved to Austin from Honduras three years ago, both have visas. (so there's no reason for her to fear)
But despite those legal protections, Galvanez has opted to drive her second grader to Fanny M. Andrews Elementary over the past three weeks rather than put him on the bus where she fears he might (he MIGHT) witness an immigration arrest or overhear constant chatter about deportations from his classmates.
“They’re too small to see those things,” Galvanez said in Spanish by phone. “He wouldn’t know what to make of it.”
Galvanez is one of many Andrews parents who have changed their habits in recent weeks in response to the uncertainties brought by President Donald Trump’s heavily publicized immigration crackdown and the arrival of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement “enhanced targeted operations” in Austin.
Some have taken more dramatic measures. The school — which mostly serves immigrants from Mexico, Central America and Afghanistan and where more than 3 in 4 students are considered English language learners — had pickup lines shrink and attendance plummet by about 50% during the week of Trump’s inauguration, according to Principal Audrey Guerrero.
Absences might have ticked up that week due to a holiday, a snow day and possibly some flu cases, (HOLIDAY, SNOW DAY FLU CASES) but Guerrero said she believes (believes) many families opted to keep their children home because they were scared of being detained (illegals).
The fear culminated one afternoon in late January when many families decided not to pick up their children right when school ended amid rumors (rumors) of immigration enforcement activity on nearby Cameron Road, according to several parents.
School staff members had to stay with the children until the evening, as cars trickled in.
“They’re afraid that something’s going to happen to them while their kids are at school, or that something’s going to happen to their kids at school,” Guerrero said.
Fear persists despite assurances from leaders
Austin city leaders have tried to assuage fears among the city’s immigrant communities. In a recent American-Statesman/KVUE interview, city leaders emphasized that ICE’s sweeps appear targeted at violent offenders and individuals with final deportation orders. ICE also has said it is focused on people with outstanding warrants.
Yet the scope of enforcement actions is largely still unknown, in part because of the lack of information shared by federal immigration officials.
Soon after Trump’s inauguration, ICE started posting national deportation totals on its X account every day that showed the agency was deporting double or triple the number of immigrants it did on a typical day last year under the Biden administration.
But those social media posts, already lacking detail about where exactly the deportations were occurring, stopped Feb. 1.
Amid the information vacuum, fears have grown and been further stoked by some evidence of larger and less targeted sweeps.
NBC News, citing an administration official, reported that about half the arrests on one day in January were of people without criminal records, meaning that they were only detained because they lacked legal authorization to be in the United States. (they were stopped for some reason & didn't have proof of legal authorization; they weren't stopped for no reason)
Workplace raids in other parts of the country, like New Jersey and Tennessee, appear to have resulted in arrests of individuals who did not commit any crimes and were only detained because they lacked legal authorization to reside in the United States.
In Austin, fear of wider sweeps has inspired advocates to organize countless “Know Your Rights” sessions, including at Catholic churches and small shops off North Lamar Boulevard, and it has led to a drop in business at food trailers and hair salons off Montopolis Boulevard.
The fear has been “undeniably disruptive” to education and community building, said Jose Carrasco, director of a family resource center that serves schools in North Austin.
During immigration scares like the one that happened at Andrews and elsewhere, students “are worried about ICE. They’re not worried about math class,” he said.
The sense of fear at Andrews does not appear to be an isolated case, he said. Carrasco, who works with Austin public schools just north of Andrews, said other nearby campuses and after-school programs have reported similar trends of lower attendance, and that many predominantly Hispanic schools have seen similar immigration scares during and after school.
The Austin school district did not provide school attendance figures in time for publication. However, the district published a video Feb. 3 on social media platforms that asked students to return to class.
“We’ve recently noticed a lot of empty desks in our classrooms,” Keith Moore, principal of Campbell Elementary School in East Austin, said in the video. “We miss you.”
Carrasco said he hopes students and parents will learn to not share information about immigration enforcement actions to avoid “feeding into the doom machine.” (yet this reporter is doing exactly that!) Yet, he said, it’s hard to completely negate a parent’s fear because of schools' lack of information.
“What they want to hear is that their kids are safe,” Carrasco said. And that’s a difficult guarantee to make, he said.
An immigration scare
On Jan. 26, the Sunday after Trump’s inauguration, Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis confirmed to the Statesman that ICE had started “enhanced targeted actions” in the city.
The news hit Andrews Elementary particularly hard. The next day, shortly before the school’s 3 p.m. pickup time, a parent called to say they had heard rumors of immigration agents nearby on Cameron Road. The news spread “like wildfire” among families, said Guerrero, the principal. The campus phone line rang with calls from distraught parents. Teachers tried their best to reassure kids who had seen the rumor through text messages and were afraid to board the bus.
School employees waited with about 10 children until the evening when families felt it was safer to show up on campus.
The week that followed “was spooky,” Guerrero said. “The buses didn’t have kids. There were no cars in the car line.”
Carmen, the grandmother of an Andrews preschool student, has continued to drive her grandson to campus each day, but she is well aware of the risks as an immigrant living in the U.S. without authorization (correct terminology: illegal. Not hated, not feared, but ILLEGAL).
The Statesman is withholding Carmen’s last name because of her legal status.
At times during the past week, Carmen has had her daughter, the boy’s aunt, drive him home. But Carmen still goes most of the time, concerned he will have to wait too long for his afternoon snack.
“You have to drive with more caution,” Carmen said.
The road ahead
On the Friday after the ICE scare at Andrews, about 30 parents crowded into a room for the school’s monthly coffee chat with the principal. Guerrero noticed she hadn’t seen many of them for days.
The parents asked about the district’s policy in dealing with immigration agents on campus. Others asked about the potential punishments for their children’s unexcused absences. Several began to cry.
The emotional meeting was one way Guerrero said that she tried to communicate to families “that I value them, that they are important to the school.”
Guerrero said attendance at Andrews bottomed out Feb. 3 when a loosely coordinated “Day without Immigrants” protest was held. One class had only two students.
In the past week, attendance has begun to return to preinauguration levels, Guerrero said. But she remains worried about what could happen in the coming months.
Luis, a father of two Andrews students who attended the Friday coffee chat, said that Guerrero offered some reassurance that the school would be able to look after students. But he believes he and other parents have resigned themselves to living their lives as normally as possible.
“When I go out, I don’t think of it,” said Luis, whose last name the Statesman is withholding due to his legal status. “I say, ‘They’re rumors. I have to go do things.’”