As conflicting messages fly over the country’s border control policy, a Tulsa immigration attorney says things have been relatively quiet in Oklahoma, though Immigration and Customs Enforcement is newly targeting companions of wanted people.
Lorena Rivas has been an immigration attorney for 13 years. She told KWGS there haven’t been any large raids in Oklahoma, but ICE is arresting more “collaterals,” or people who happen to be with a known target.
“In the past, during the Biden administration, well, they would go for that individual, and then leave anybody else around, collaterals, because they were low priority. They didn’t have that criminal record, they didn’t have immigration history. But now, ICE has been directed to pick up any collaterals if they come upon them,” said Rivas.
At the behest of hardliners inside his administration, President Donald Trump rescinded a brief reprieve for undocumented people working in certain industries like agriculture. On Sunday, he ordered ICE to arrest more people in Democratic-run cities following large protests in Los Angeles.
Tulsa, while nestled in one of most Republican states in the country, walks a purple line. Rivas said ICE doesn’t publicize what it’s going to do, but she suspects Tulsa is not top-of-mind for Trump and the “campaign of fear” built upon constant negative messaging from the administration is more pressing.
“Oklahoma, being a red state, I do believe it’s more insulated. Further, it’s a smaller population state, so I think they want to hit the big targets, and again that fear to drive people to self-deport, to voluntary leave a country, and what’s unfortunate is sometimes these people are in the process of applying for things, or are qualified to apply for things, but because of that fear and not knowing any better, they just decide to give up their chance to remain here,” said Rivas.
As Trump continues his push to drastically change immigration policy in the United States, the Department of Homeland Security reports 2,000 arrests per day. Its goal is 3,000.
