MIAMI — Some undocumented immigrants living in Florida have barely stepped out of their homes this week, fearful of President Donald Trump’s pledge to carry out what he has called “” and Gov. Ron DeSantis’ paralleled efforts to in the state.
That’s all Magali, an undocumented Guatemalan immigrant in Central Florida, and her friends talk about. The mother of three U.S.-born children, who resides in the city of Ocoee, requested she only be identified by her first name due fear of deportation because of her immigration status.
Even though the U.S. has been her home for 14 years, Magali and her husband, who works in the landscape business, have come up with a plan of action in case the couple is picked up by immigration authorities.
Magali was adamant in saying her family does “not want to go back to Guatemala because it’s a dangerous country.” But if she and her husband are deported, they have their children’s passports ready so that they can travel together.
The thought breaks Magali’s heart since “the kids are happy here” in the U.S., where they were born.
Mixed immigration status families in Florida are feeling anxious as they brace for what could happen since Trump issued a wave of immigration-related executive orders. And DeSantis’ move to get the state Legislature to pass additional immigration laws is now making the situation more tense for them.
“We banned sanctuary cities my first year as governor, and we are not a sanctuary state,” DeSantis said in on Thursday, adding that local and state officials “don’t have the right to block any type of immigration enforcement, and if you do that, you can lose your job.”
Cities such as and have been a big because of their policies limiting cooperation with immigration authorities. But immigrant rights advocates in nonsanctuary jurisdictions like Florida are also bracing to push back against both a state and federal government promising to work hand-in-hand to increase deportations. Eleven states, as well as the District of Columbia, are .
About 4% of the population in Florida was comprised of undocumented immigrants as of 2021, .
In the same week that the new Department of Homeland Security announced it was rolling back long-standing policies restricting immigration enforcement actions in so-called like schools, churches and hospitals, Felipe Sousa-Lazaballet was hosting a group of young people at the Hope CommUnity Center. He leads the nonprofit organization, which advocates for immigrants and other underserved communities, in Apopka, near Orlando.
The young people were writing letters urging state lawmakers against voting for new immigration laws espoused by DeSantis.
Proposals made by the governor’s office include charging law enforcement officers with misdemeanors and elected officials with felonies if they do not fully cooperate in enforcing immigration laws. The governor’s office also called for expanding the migrant transport program so migrants in the state can be sent outside the United States.
DeSantis called for a special session next week to tackle his immigration agenda. Initially, some Republican legislators pushed back, saying these issues can be dealt with in the regular March session, creating a rare clash between the governor and lawmakers from his own party.
A sent to lawmakers Friday said the Legislature is “constitutionally required” to convene after the governor has called the session. It’s not clear how lawmakers will handle the agenda DeSantis wants them to address.
But Republican leaders in the Legislature have also made clear that they back Trump’s immigration agenda.
Advocates like Thomas Kennedy, of the Florida Immigrant Coalition, said they “have to take it seriously because, in the past, the Legislature unfortunately has not operated as an independent branch of government in the state. They just kind of have been to the will of the governor.”
Sousa-Lazaballet said they “were expecting this trifecta moment, with Trump and DeSantis and the Legislature.”
His organization will start rallying undocumented youth, or Dreamers, as well as faith leaders in the state to advocate for immigrants’ human rights as early as Friday, he said.
In particular because Florida is not a sanctuary state, rumors of immigration raids have sprouted up across the state, both Kennedy and Sousa-Lazaballet said, signaling the level of fear an uncertainty gripping immigrant communities at this time.
“There’s a lot of confusion,” Kennedy said. “So keeping track of all these rapid changes is a lot.”
Sousa-Lazaballet said that “if you’re petrified, very afraid all the time, that’s no life to live and then that becomes a motivator for people to just leave on their own” and essentially self-deport.
Kennedy and Sousa-Lazaballet believe it is just a matter of time before immigration raids scale up. In the meantime, they are continuing to help vulnerable families in case an undocumented relative is suddenly detained or deported.
Rosales, who requested she only be identified by her first name due to fears around her immigration status, came to the U.S. from Honduras in 2017 with her husband.
The couple built a life in the city of Mount Dora in Central Florida, where they run a construction business. Rosales said her 6-year-old daughter constantly asks her, “Why is this happening? Why doesn’t Trump want us?”
As she attempts to come up with an answer, Rosales said she has also been having difficult conversations with her friends to see if any of them would be willing to care for her U.S.-born child in case she gets deported.
“I’m nervous, frustrated and exhausted,” she said.
Sousa-Lazaballet said that while “this does feel like a new low for sure … I’ve seen time and time again that people rise to the moment.”
Nicole Acevedo reported from New York and Carmen Sesin from Miami.
