Border security and immigration restrictions are a central issue that Donald Trump has insisted on changing; the president-elect's first cabinet appointments indicate that they will be a central focus of his administration, during a briefing held by Ethnic Media Services, Experts agreed that immigrants are an essential part of the growth of the United States and not having them would be a huge loss for the country's economy.
During the meeting, a group of experts on the subject of migration pointed out the points to consider in light of the changes that Donald Trump will make, as he has mentioned that he will implement several measures to carry out mass deportations, deny entry to immigrants, strengthen border security and more, however, a significant amount of budget is needed to carry out these modifications successfully.
Jeremy Robbins, executive director of the American Immigration Council, noted that people who are deported are usually those who are already in contact with the government, such as those in detention centers.
When Trump talks about mass deportations, he is referring to seeking out immigrants in their communities to get them out of the country. However, carrying out this type of process would be extremely costly because it requires a large investment in the immigration system, Robbins said.
In addition, he added that they will detain and hold people until they are sent back to their country, a difficult situation, since currently they only have the capacity to move 50 thousand immigrants.
Greg Chen, senior director of government relations for the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), explained that despite plans for mass deportations, there are a number of laws that currently protect people regardless of their immigration status, since every person has universal rights.
Likewise, he expressed that, like any other person, everyone has a human value and it is important to recognize the work of migrants, because if there were mass deportations, the country's economy would be at risk, since many activities depend specifically on the migrant community, such as agriculture, which would have enormous consequences.
Julia Gelatt, associate director of the Migration Policy Institute's (MPI) U.S. immigration policy program, explained that the way people view migration has changed, not only within the country, but there is fear in the face of Trump's arrival.
"People coming from around the world will think it's more dangerous to come now that President Trump is here, it's seen as the worst time to come, unlike what happened with President Biden, so a lot of people won't try the trip just because of the rhetoric," Gelatt said.
Added to this is the fact that the country is aging, he added, as the US population will not be sufficient to sustain the country's economy.
"To sustain the workforce we need migrants to come to work and continue growing. If an employer depends on the migrant workforce and loses its workers, it can even close its operations or make them smaller, since they complement the workforce," added Julia Gelatt, also a graduate in sociology and anthropology.
He added that if work permits are lost through legal means, many companies will not accept undocumented workers, which will cause the economy to suffer due to job losses.
For her part, Elizabeth Taufa, lawyer and strategist of the Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC), explained that applying for citizenship will be even more difficult, because the number of people accepted now will be minimal, as the legal part is planned to be modified to set more requirements and greater control of the immigration processes.
You may be interested in: Bay Area organizations unite in support of immigrants as Donald Trump enters the White House
