Donald Trump at his inauguration ceremony in the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C. Trump took office for his second term as the 47th president of the United States. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Florida immigrant advocacy groups are amping up efforts to help people without legal status prepare for encounters with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers.
Two days into office, President Donald Trump has signed a flurry of executive orders restricting immigration, and his administration has removed immigration enforcement protections from churches, schools, and hospitals.
Trump’s promise of mass deportations and Gov. Ron DeSantis’ eagerness to aid federal enforcement could have profound ramifications for Florida, where an estimated 1.2 million people without legal status live, said Tessa Petit, Florida Immigrant Coalition’s (FLIC) executive director, during a Wednesday morning press conference.
“Here in Florida, I want people to also understand we’re not talking about 100,000 or 200,000 people. We’re talking about over a million people in the state,” she said. “We’re talking about hundreds of thousands of children who have parents who are undocumented. We’re talking about the state we live in that is not going to look the same ever again.
“So right now, our priority is, let’s protect our communities. Let’s give them the tools they need to stay safe as long as possible.”
Immigrants subject to removal from the country should designate a power of attorney and have contact information for an immigration attorney, said representatives from FLIC and Americans for Immigrant Justice.
“We want people to stay focused. We want people to not count themselves out [of deportation],” Petit said. “We want people to not consider that their family member who are documented may be an exception. We want everybody to be reminded: Protect yourselves.”
FLIC is hosting workshops to teach people their rights and stressed during the press conference that people shouldn’t let ICE agents into their homes without a warrant signed by a judge. A virtual workshop is scheduled for Jan. 29 at 3 p.m.
A.J. Hernandez Anderson, director of Americans for Immigrant Justice’s pro bono program, urged employers to develop plans with immigration attorneys in case ICE agents come to their businesses.
“Once employers have a plan in place, they should make sure their workers understand the plan and practice the plan like a fire drill,” Hernandez Anderson said.
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