With increasing numbers of immigrants being detained or removed from their communities by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), what are the effects of detaining them on their well-being? In this episode, we discuss the current issues facing detained immigrants and what the research says about immigrant well-being in detention centers.

At least half a million immigrants who recently came to the United States did so legally, a process that hinged on them passing security vetting and having a U.S. sponsor. Nonetheless, their current legal status is in jeopardy. In this episode, we discuss how these populations are navigating these issues and how the political uncertainty is affecting their daily lives.

Since December of 2024, the number of partnerships between Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and local police and sheriffs’ offices, also known as 287(g) agreements, grew at an unprecedented rate, from 139 agreements to 531 as of May 8, 2025, representing a 225% increase. These agreements deputize local police officers to carry out immigration enforcement, traditionally the realm of the federal government. In this episode, we discuss the research on how these agreements affect immigrant communities.

Since President Trump took office earlier this year, he has signed many immigration-related Executive Orders that contain dozens of policy changes. In this episode, we provide an overview of these Executive Orders, their current status, and the implications of these actions for im/migrant well-being.

As we stare down the prospect of mass deportation in the coming years, questions arise as to what will happen to the immigrant and U.S.-born children of those who are deported from the United States. In this episode, we examine how immigration enforcement efforts, such as deportations and workplace raids, affect not just the children of those who are targeted, but all children who are members of the communities that experience these immigration enforcement measures.

What is it like to experience a disaster as an immigrant? As the frequency of natural hazards increases due to climate change, immigrants are particularly vulnerable to the devastation that natural hazards bring. This episode explores what kinds of disaster relief immigrants have access to and barriers immigrants face when attempting to recover and rebuild after natural hazards strike.

Immigration has been a central issue in the 2024 presidential race, with candidates from both the Republican and Democratic parties proposing immigration policies that will inevitably affect im/migrant well-being. In this episode, we discuss some of the central pillars of both candidates’ proposed policies and based on past research, we analyze how these policies may impact im/migrant well-being.

In contrast to the criminal justice system, immigrants who come before a judge in civil immigration court are not guaranteed the right to legal representation should they be unable to afford it, yet in some cases they face consequences as severe as those applied in criminal cases. In this episode, we discuss whether immigrants facing detention and deportation should have access to the right to counsel by evaluating some of the research on the consequences of lacking legal representation and potential policy solutions.