When It Comes to Immigration, “People Are Terrified”

Immigration Law & Justice Michigan expects more ICE raids, more uncertainty from the government, and more fear for legal and illegal immigrants alike

By Art Bukowski | May 31, 2025

The Trump Administration has been clear on one topic since Jan. 20: Immigrants are in the crosshairs.

Since taking office in January, President Donald Trump has placed a priority on cracking down on illegal immigration. The problem is that the administration’s zeal for tackling this issue seems to have swept at least some legal immigrants up in the drag net, and many observers have called the administration’s actions unconstitutional.

The practical effect of all this activity is that many immigrants, regardless of their status, are worried.

“The reality is that the campaign of fear that this administration is waging against anyone who is not a U.S. citizen or doesn’t present as a U.S. citizen is affecting virtually everyone who was not born here,” says Marcelo Betti, a Traverse City-based immigration attorney.

Northern Express connected with Betti and his organization—Immigration Law & Justice Michigan (ILJ-MI)—to see what’s going on as the heat increases for those born away from American soil.

About ILJ-MI

ILJ-MI works throughout Michigan to help people legally immigrate to the United States. Their focus is on so-called “humanitarian” immigration, which means they work primarily with individuals and families (as opposed to large groups or employment-based immigration).

While not everyone the organization assists has been subject to crises or strife back in their home countries, a great deal have. They’ve helped hundreds of Ukrainians escape the war there in recent years, and they secure visas for victims of crimes or human trafficking. All told, people from more than 70 countries have been assisted by the ILJ-MI’s Traverse City office alone.

Even before Trump, the immigration process was confusing and overwhelming, especially if you didn’t speak English. ILJ-MI prides itself on helping people in need navigate this lengthy process.

“The American immigration system hasn’t been easy, ever. Maybe in the Mayflower era,” says ILJM-MI Executive Director Julie Power. “But modern immigration is complicated, expensive, inconsistent—insert all of the words here.”

ILJ-MI focuses on getting people here and generally does not provide deportation defense. That said, they are able to refer clients to legal resources and are generally aware of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity via communication with partner agencies and other advocacy groups.

More to Come

Aside from a few publicized incidents, Power and Betti—who runs the Traverse City office—aren’t aware of major ICE activity in northern Michigan in recent months. They don’t expect that to last.

Betti believes that federal officials are currently focusing on higher populated areas downstate where they can get more bang for their buck. But the feds know that the Grand Traverse region has a ton of migrant workers in the busy summer season, Betti says, and he expects that to attract ICE attention here in the next several weeks.

“I don’t have a crystal ball, but I would anticipate there will be a sharp increase in these immigration enforcement activities—raids or targeted arrests—during the summer months,” he says. “They know that a large percentage of farm laborers are not U.S. citizens.”

The administration is actively preparing to open what MLive has described as the Midwest’s largest ICE detention facility in Baldwin, signaling that northern Michigan is very much on the radar.

Betti says that even legal immigrants who should have no reason to worry are scared, considering what they’re seeing and hearing.

“People are terrified,” Betti says. “Whether it’s on TV or social media, you’re seeing over and over again stories of people who have status, people who are green card holders, who have student visas, who all of a sudden are being detained and being placed in deportation proceedings.”

Immigration Impacts

Deportations aside, there have also been major implications for ILJ-MI’s main focus, which is getting people into the country safely and legally.

Congress has given the executive branch “a lot of discretion” on how to implement immigration laws and policies, Betti says. This particular administration is all over the place, making it hard to stay the course as clients navigate the process.

“Advising clients on immigration matters has been very challenging, in part because it seems like every week there is a major policy change or policy announcement that affects the advice that I may give to someone about what’s best for their case,” Betti says. “Things are changing so fast.”

Even people who are already in the process are deciding to pause and lay low, Betti says.

“I have clients who [have] had a green card for many years who are ready to apply for naturalization for U.S. citizenship,” he says. “But even then, they’re terrified of applying because that means they have to go through an interview process, which means they have to go into a federal building, and they’re hearing stories about people being arrested at their citizenship interview.”

A Wake-up Call?

ILJ-MI also works to educate immigrants and native-born citizens about the process and the current situation surrounding immigration and enforcement.

“There’s been a big educational component, especially when it comes to first response and knowing what [someone’s] rights are in the event that immigration authorities come knocking,” he says. “It’s people who are not immigrants necessarily, just members of our communities who suddenly realized that we need to really be on our toes here and know how to protect others who are vulnerable.”

Betti and others in his field stress that immigrants have rights that can’t (and shouldn’t) simply be discarded.

“People elected a president. They did not elect a new Constitution…and the Constitution is very clear that all persons—not just lawfully present individuals—are entitled to a certain measure of due process and equal protection under the law,” he says. “And the reason the Constitution has these protections is precisely to protect minorities and vulnerable populations from being oppressed by a majority.”

Ultimately, Betti hopes that everyone is paying attention to what’s going on with immigrants. After all, when rights disappear for some, everyone is in danger.

“I think that U.S. citizens are realizing that the threat to due process that we are seeing now with immigrants could also affect U.S. citizens if rights continue to erode,” he concludes.