In the United States, undocumented immigrants face unprecedented aggressive enforcement actions through Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids and deportations that deeply traumatize families and communities. Children of undocumented immigrants often bear the brunt of these policies, facing sudden separations, psychological distress, and long-term instability. These effects are being felt by youth right here in Marin County.

Despite the urgent need for comprehensive immigration reform, there has been no significant legislative relief for undocumented individuals seeking legal status and ways for families to protect themselves and their children. The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, announced by the Department of Homeland Security on June 15, 2012, offers temporary protection from deportation and work authorization to certain undocumented youth brought to the U.S. as children. However, DACA does not confer lawful immigration status and remains vulnerable to legal and political challenges. Furthermore, while DACA recipients can still renew their benefits, as of July 16, 2021, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will not accept new applications. Earlier legislative measures, such as Section 245(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, allowed certain undocumented immigrants to adjust their status if they had a qualifying petition filed before April 30, 2001, and paid a penalty fee. The most sweeping relief came with the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986, which granted amnesty to approximately 2.7 million undocumented immigrants who had resided continuously in the U.S. since before January 1, 1982. These pathways have long since closed, leaving millions in legal limbo and vulnerable to enforcement actions under new administrations.

When Donald Trump first launched his presidential campaign in 2015, he promised to deport millions of unauthorized immigrants and dismantle protections for sanctuary cities. Upon taking office for a second term in 2025, he swiftly issued executive orders to expand ICE powers and redefine enforcement priorities. On July 4, 2025, Trump signed the so-called “Big Beautiful Bill,” a budget reconciliation package that allocated over $170 billion to immigration enforcement, including $30 billion for ICE expansion, $45 billion for detention facilities, and $51.6 billion for border wall construction. This legislation made ICE the highest-funded federal law enforcement agency, surpassing the combined budgets of the FBI, DEA, ATF, and the U.S. Marshals.

In Executive Order 13768, Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States, the Trump administration targeted sanctuary jurisdictions by threatening to withhold federal funding from cities that limited cooperation with ICE. Additionally, ICE has intensified its crackdown on sensitive locations. While the agency had previously followed internal guidance to avoid enforcement actions in schools, churches, and hospitals, Trump’s new directives removed these limitations, allowing raids in places once considered off-limits. Reports have surfaced of ICE targeting high school students in the community and surrounding school events, a shift that has drawn widespread condemnation from civil rights groups and legal scholars.

These aggressive policies, backed by sweeping executive orders and unprecedented funding, have reshaped the landscape of immigration enforcement in America, leaving undocumented families, especially children, in a state of fear and vulnerability.

As a result of these draconian enforcement measures, the U.S. citizen children of undocumented parents, faced with the threat of parental deportation, grapple with overwhelming difficulties affecting their physical and mental health. Due to the heightened level of stress in their day-to-day lives, these children experience anxiety, depression, and sadness, causing them to have trouble sleeping, withdraw from their family and friends, and become unwilling to communicate with others. They may live in a state of constant hyper-alertness, constantly scanning for threats around them. The effects are detrimental, affecting their social and emotional well-being, academic performance, and can lead to serious behavioral problems.

Children of undocumented parents also suffer from poorer physical health compared with children of documented parents. Exacerbating matters, U.S. citizen children of undocumented immigrants may face daunting barriers to accessing healthcare, since their parents are often unable to obtain insurance coverage or a healthcare provider. Furthermore, studies have found that faced with a parental deportation, children with pre-existing health conditions such as asthma were more likely to experience worsened symptoms. They were also more likely to suffer from frequent physical ailments, such as headaches, stomachaches, and fatigue.

Children who have experienced parental deportation exhibit even more pronounced symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), particularly if they witnessed firsthand the arrest or detainment of their parent. Studies have shown that these children are more likely to cope by externalizing their emotions, such as engaging in risky behavior and acting out, or internalizing their emotions, which manifests as withdrawal, depression, and feelings of guilt. Living in a community facing the ongoing threat of deportation can serve to continually trigger the child’s PTSD symptoms.

In Marin County, immigrant communities have deeply felt the impact of intensified immigration enforcement, as reported by local advocacy organization Canal Alliance. Anxiety has surged among residents of all ages and immigration statuses, fueled by frequent news of ICE raids and growing rumors of local enforcement actions.

Canal Alliance’s Immigration Legal Services team is actively advising clients on these risks, while their therapists report rising stress levels among families. In speaking with Isabel French, Director of Marketing and Communications, she explained that many of their youth clients express a fear of going outside, even to parks, drawing comparisons to the isolation of the pandemic. Parents are increasingly hesitant to send children to school, with some considering homeschooling. Others are reluctant to apply for government benefits like Medi-Cal, fearing exposure to enforcement. In response, Canal Alliance continues to advocate for immigrant families to develop contingency plans, including childcare affidavits, to prepare for potential deportation scenarios. As French relates, the contingency plan, “while critical, is a sad testament to what so many families are facing right now.”

Humanizing the experiences of children affected by immigration enforcement underscores the profound psychological trauma endured by those in precarious and vulnerable circumstances. According to the American Immigration Council, 17.6% of Marin County residents are immigrants, and 5.9% of all U.S. citizen children live with one undocumented parent. Even with these high figures, in preparing for this article, the authors found it difficult to convince local teens to relate their stories out of fear for themselves and their parents. We were able to speak to a senior in high school, whom we will refer to as “F” to protect her privacy. Although F is not the child of an undocumented immigrant, her story nevertheless underscores the profound psychological trauma that teens face due to the current administration’s immigration-related fear tactics.

Born in Ethiopia, after her parents passed away when she was a baby, F was adopted by a U.S. citizen and brought to the United States, thereby becoming a U.S. citizen. During the first Trump administration, she and her parent encountered an issue with her immigration status. However, with the help of an immigration attorney, she obtained all the necessary paperwork to prove her U.S. citizenship. This event, however, sparked fear for F and her parent that perhaps her status in the United States was not as secure as they had always believed, bringing on a heightened sense of vigilance in their everyday lives.

During the second Trump administration, F’s outlook dramatically worsened. Recently, F’s good friend, who was adopted from Ghana as a young child, was picked up by ICE at her home. F has not been able to contact her friend and believes she was deported. F had always understood that, like her, her friend was a U.S. citizen. This event has worsened her fears and impacts her daily life. She carries her passport with her. She keeps a bag packed. She has also purchased a ticket out of the country as a precautionary measure and moves the departure date forward each month. In addition, F told us that her fears affect what she is able to do, saying that "when ICE raids are higher, she stays in more." The threat of deportation, as well as first-hand exposure to ICE raids on the streets, has resulted in PTSD-like symptoms. F exhibits symptoms including nightmares, anxiety, and trouble sleeping. While she rationally understands that her likelihood of deportation is low, she states that this knowledge does not lessen the psychological and emotional toll it takes on her every day.

From ICE raids in sensitive locations to the administration’s daily quota of immigration arrests, these measures have left families, especially children, in a state of fear, instability, and psychological distress. In Marin County, this crisis is acutely felt, with local youth expressing symptoms of PTSD and families withdrawing from public life out of fear. While news reports publicize the unrelenting arrests and deportation of immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for their entire lifetimes, the children of these individuals are living in the shadows, facing a relentless erosion of their sense of safety, belonging, and identity. It is time for immigration reform to create a pathway for these families and for our government to protect the most vulnerable and create a safer future for these children.

For those looking to make a difference in the lives of immigrant children, readers are encouraged to consult the recent MCBA article, https://marinbar.org/news/article/?type=news&id=841 for suggestions on supporting Canal Alliance. Additionally, the American Immigration Council (AIC) promotes a fair and just immigration system through litigation, policy research, advocacy, public education, and cultural exchange programs. Visit https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/ for more information about AIC.

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