Border Under Trump: Fear and Uncertainty Grip Migrant Communities
Table of Contents
CITY — April 27, 2025 — Amidst heightened border security measures, it is meaningful too understand the current situation. At the border’s edge, soldiers and armored vehicles underscore a climate of fear since the Trump administration began its new term.What’s at stake involves who, what, when, were, and why has everyone’s focus turned to new and harsher immigration policies? Further analysis of these policies is on the way.
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Border Under Trump: Fear and Uncertainty Grip Migrant Communities
A Silent watch on the Border
At the highest point of a landfill in Sunland Park, New Mexico, an American soldier stands guard, watching the border with Mexico. The early morning stillness, just before 7 a.m., is broken only by the trucks ferrying maquila workers on the Mexican side. Nearby, a pair of Stryker armored fighting vehicles, deployed as early April, monitor the line. These fast tanks, capable of carrying nine soldiers, stand as silent sentinels in what was recently one of the most active zones on the planet. Today, a palpable fear permeates the air.
From this vantage point, miles of President Donald Trump‘s border wall are visible. Tons of steel, remnants of the wall that former President Joe Biden attempted to sell as scrap metal during his waning days in office, lie stacked on the desert landscape. The wall, a centerpiece of Trump’s first term, has been augmented by a new, more insidious barrier: fear. This “effective instrument” is composed of a series of threats, ranging from the 6,100 military personnel stationed at the border to visa cancellations and the relentless pursuit of undocumented immigrants throughout the country.
Declining crossings, Rising Anxiety
In March, the Trump management announced a significant drop in irregular border crossings, reporting only 7,100 encounters. This figure,touted as the lowest irregular crosses
in decades,represents a 92% decrease compared to December 2024,the final full month of the Biden presidency.
Though, these statistics mask the human cost of the administration’s policies. The climate of fear and relentless enforcement has profoundly impacted the lives of many undocumented immigrants.
Cristina’s Story: A Life Under Surveillance
The story of Cristina, an undocumented Brazilian immigrant, illustrates the pervasive anxiety. Since February, when nine patrols and 18 immigration officers arrived at her home with the intention of arresting and deporting her, her life has been irrevocably altered.Your children can stay here, but you don’t,
she recalls two ICE officers telling her. The officers were surprised to find a 2
