Opinion: Protecting New York’s Most Vulnerable From Federal Attacks

“The Trump administration’s scare tactics have been so ruthless that they have successfully inhibited those in need from seeking social service providers, leaving them further isolated and at-risk.”

A little over a year ago, Frank, a young gay man from Haiti, fled to the U.S., was granted Temporary Protected Status, and obtained permission to work lawfully in the country. He got a job, applied for asylum, and was well on his way to finding stability in his life. That was until the Trump administration revoked the temporary protected status awarded to Haitians, terminating Frank’s work authorization. He, like so many others, now sits in limbo, waiting to see if his claim for asylum will be heard or if he will be pushed into deportation without due process.

Frank’s story is not a unique one during these turbulent times. He is one of millions of young immigrants, victims of violence, trafficked youth, and students who came to the U.S. looking for safety and stability, having fled a country where they had none. In the first 100 days of the current administration, it has declared war on all migrants—young, old, married, queer. Mistakes are made, decisions are rash, and there is no recourse. Last week, three young citizen children, one with cancer, were deported, and the administration did little more than shrug its indifference.

Unlike countless others, however, Frank has the benefit of support from his advocates at the The Free to Be Youth Project (FYP). FYP, along with the Domestic Violence Project (DVP) and Sex Workers Project (SWP) of the Urban Justice Center, are direct legal service providers and political advocacy groups in New York City, each with unique insight into the broad and devastating impacts that Trump’s onslaught of executive orders and policy directives have had across New York.

Our clients are some of those most vulnerable and affected, including unaccompanied minors, unhoused youth, domestic violence survivors, HIV-positive adults, victims of trafficking, and those involved in criminalized street economies.

Let us be clear, however, that Trump and his executive orders do not act alone. City and state compliance has allowed these orders to be carried out, despite their cruel and often unlawful nature. New York City, a haven for many, has instead become a battleground—with our most vulnerable members struggling to fight back amidst the slew of hostility and violence directed toward them. 

Already, these communities live at the intersection of multiple forms of oppression and neglect. Frank struggles daily with the fear that his identity as a queer immigrant makes him a target, all the more since he was the victim of a hate crime shortly after his temporary status was revoked.  

Trump’s leadership has encouraged attacks against populations represented by our projects—by other Americans, and by public systems meant to provide empathy and support. More than ever, individuals are afraid to pursue legal recourse and/or invoke their legal protections. As we’ve seen in the past few months, protected ‘rights’ are no longer guaranteed to all. That’s why it’s critical for these vulnerable communities to have the benefit of competent legal representation in these challenging times. 

The Trump administration’s scare tactics have been so ruthless that they have successfully inhibited those in need from seeking social service providers, leaving them further isolated and at-risk. DVP’s clients are survivors of domestic violence, for whom immigration pathways are complicated by the unimaginable harm they experienced in the most intimate of relationships.  

Larry, an HIV-positive client of DVP, has struggled to ensure his own safety as his former abuser continues to exert power over him, and were it not for DVP’s efforts, he might have become yet another crime statistic. Exacerbating his legal troubles are the harms that arise when he misses an appointment for critical medical care or fails to attend a mandated court hearing out of fear that any step from his home risks apprehension and deportation. 

Danny, a client of SWP, serves as another example of the incredible harm faced by migrants in the country. Having experienced unimaginable violence in his home country, Danny fled to the United States. He paid thousands of dollars to an immigration attorney to help him navigate the asylum process, only to discover that the attorney’s license was suspended. Danny’s asylum claim is now at risk of being denied without a hearing, following a new directive that refuses migrants their rights to due process. Despite his best efforts to obtain legal counsel, Danny’s lack of representation leaves him further vulnerable.

Every day, a new threat emerges that restricts our work, that of helping these communities obtain stability. Individuals are being stripped of their social security cards, denied due process at asylum hearings, and restricted from opening bank accounts. Despite generating $1.6 trillion of economic activity and paying over $500 billion in taxes, the contributions of immigrants are overlooked and attacked. The IRS’s collaboration with ICE is just one of the most recent examples of undocumented individuals being targeted despite their determination to uplift this country alongside themselves. 

Only 100 days into the new administration, the threats coming from the White House are large and unforgiving. The Trump Administration’s immigration strategies have been wholly destructive—to Frank, Danny, and thousands of others like them.

 They’ve culminated in a Maryland man with legally protected status being sent to El Salvador, based on a supposed administrative error; over 300 student visa revocations, and over 1,000 changes in the legal status of international students and recent graduates; the resurrection of the Alien Enemies Act, a long abandoned wartime authority that allows the president exorbitant power over deportations; and the illegal removal of hundreds of individuals without due process, ignoring explicit court orders instructing otherwise.

Under Trump, individuals with anything short of U.S. citizenship (and not even then, as we’ve seen in a growing number of incidents) are increasingly vulnerable to arrest, detainment, and deportation. Populations who are most visible to NYPD and ICE agents face heightened risks—given, especially, that many are already regarded as threatening, criminal, or deviant by the state.

SWP, FYP, and DVP are constantly striving to help these communities. However, we cannot do this work alone. Our resources, and those of our peer organizations, are limited, and the increasingly dangerous conditions are straining our efforts.

We urge New York’s city and state governments, including the City Council, State Senate, and State Assembly, to stand up and join us in this fight. It is critical that we protect all members of our community and ensure their safety.

Amy Leipziger is the project director at the Urban Justice Center’s Free to Be Youth Project. Madeline Garcia Bigelow is the associate director of the Urban Justice Center and managing director of the Domestic Violence Project. Abigail Anzalone is co-director of the Sex Workers Project at the Urban Justice Center.