DENVER — After President-elect Donald Trump’s announcement that Tom Homan will lead U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), immigrant rights groups in Colorado are preparing for the possibility of mass deportations.
Homan is returning to a top border security role within the Trump White House after serving as acting director of ICE during the first 18 months of Trump's first term. Prior to his tenure in the Trump administration, he was in the Obama administration as the ICE enforcement and removal operations executive associate director. In 2015, Obama gave Homan the Presidential Rank Award.
Homan is joining a Trump administration that has vowed to carry out mass deportations, which Trump has said would be in the millions.
“I think Holman has an incredibly scary background. He oversaw Trump's family separation policy, which separated over 5,000 children from their parents during Trump's first administration, many of whom were never reunited,” said Raquel Lane-Arellano, communications manager for the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition (CIRC). “I think his appointment shows that they're serious about things like removing birthright citizenship and actively taking away citizenship from people who have become citizens. And so we're worried.”
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Lane-Arellano said CIRC is focused on informing immigrants about their rights if deportations begin in Colorado.
“If ICE comes to your door, the best thing you can do is to not answer the door unless they have a warrant that has been signed by a judge,” Lane-Arellano said. “Colorado has essentially expanded constitutional rights to our Coloradans who are undocumented, as well. And so I think we have some things that we can do in Colorado. One is if Trump attempts to use the National Guard, Jared Polis, our governor, can reject that request.”
Lane-Arellano said if mass deportations are carried out, it would not be the first time in U.S. history. In the 1930s the U.S. deported about two million Mexicansand Mexican Americans. Historians estimate more than half of those deported were U.S. citizens who were born in the U.S. These deportations happened during the Great Depression when the economy was down and competition for jobs was intense.
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Taking a look at recent history, according to Reuters, Barack Obama’s administration deported 2.9 million people during his first 4-year term. Donald Trump’s administration deported 1. 5 million people in four years.
The latest Reuters data shows Joe Biden’s administration has deported 1.1 million people so far and is possibly on track to exceed Trump’s deportation numbers.
The Denver Human Rights & Community Partnerships and its Immigrant & Refugee Affairs Division team will host a series of meetings this week to hear immigrants' concerns following the election at the following library branches:
- Montbello Library: Thursday, Nov. 14 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
- Corky Gonzales Library: Wednesday, Nov. 13 from 2 p.m. to 3:00 pm and Friday, Nov. 15 from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- Schlessman Library: Thursday, Nov. 14 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. and Friday, Nov. 15 from noon to 1 p.m.
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