Trump's anti-immigration crackdown has US Pakistanis anxious

“My concern is, if I’m deported as an illegal immigrant, everything will go back to zero. I’ll have nothing,” said 48-year-old Mushtaq Ahmad*, a Pakistani national living in New York State, who filed for asylum earlier this year.

A former truck driver in the Middle East, Mushtaq now works long shifts at a convenience store outside Albany, sending what little he can back home. Mushtaq spent more than two decades working as a truck driver in the Middle East, but years of grueling labor abroad brought little change to the lives of his family. Coming to the United States was his last attempt to build a stable future, to earn enough to educate his six children and finally give his family the security he could never achieve back home.

Ahmad arrived in the United States in July of last year. Since then, he has received a work permit and a Social Security Number. The documents that allow him to work legally in the US.

But the promises he had envisioned of a life filled with opportunity and security have collided with the stark reality of an increasingly hostile immigration climate. “Friends told me life in the US is good, fun, with lots of jobs, money, and everything is easy. So, I thought, let's give it a try. But now I’m not happy, and everyone who came to America like me is regretting their decision,” he said.

His journey to the US cost him roughly $16,000, taking him through Europe and Mexico along irregular routes. He estimates that the typical cost for such journeys ranges from $30,000 to $40,000, depending on the logistical hurdles involved.

On his first day back in office, January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump signed executive orders aimed at sharply increasing deportations of undocumented immigrants. The primary order, titled “Protecting the American People Against Invasion,” reinstates and expands expedited removal policies. Under this rule, immigration officials can deport individuals without a court hearing if they cannot prove two years of continuous residence in the US, a policy previously ended under the Biden administration.

When he arrived, Ahmad, a professional truck trailer driver, assumed he could continue his work in the US, as he had back home. But the situation has grown tense. Instead of being on the open road, he now takes up odd jobs, never venturing far from his residence. “I am scared that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) might come after me if I go out,” he said. His fear is not abstract; it dictates how he navigates public spaces, from grocery stores to streets lined with authorities.

Most of their information comes from WhatsApp groups and social media platforms where snippets of news, rumors, and social media posts spread faster than official updates.

According to the Pew Research Center, the unauthorised immigrant population in the US reached a record 14 million in 2023, with preliminary figures suggesting further growth in 2024 before declining slightly in 2025.

Meanwhile, ICE detention numbers have surged under the Trump administration, reaching 59,762 people nationwide as of September 21, 2025 — up from 59,380 just six weeks earlier. For comparison, ICE detention under the Biden administration averaged 30,000–35,000, while Trump’s first term peaked at about 55,000 in 2019.

"Every day I wake up thinking, will today be the day?,” he asked. "It’s like walking on a tightrope without a safety net," he added.

Ahmad’s lawyer has warned him to avoid airports and other locations where encounters with immigration officials are likely.

Media reports indicate that ICE has occasionally detained lawful permanent residents. Yet some immigrants feel a measure of safety.

Pakistani-American Ainy Agha, 43, a green card holder based in Massachusetts, said she has confidence in the US legal system. “ICE raids and deportations are aimed at people without legal status or those with criminal records. People like us, with lawful status, a solid tax history, and a clean background, are not the target,” she explained.

Despite this, broader policies — expanding detention centres, empowering local police as immigration agents, imposing ICE arrest quotas, and reviving the Remain in Mexico policy -- have created an environment of pervasive fear. Programs like Project Homecoming, which offer $1,000 for voluntary departure, alongside threats of fines and deportation for noncompliance, have left many constantly anxious. DHS figures released on September 23 report nearly two million undocumented immigrants have either been deported or left voluntarily since January 20, 2025.

Forty-year-old Tariq Khan*, a Pakistani-American entrepreneur in Virginia, explained how the labour market has contracted. “We’re in the transportation business, and the fear in the air is hitting everyone — legal workers, green card holders, and the undocumented. Job applications have dried up. The labour market is disappearing because people are afraid,” he said. Businesses in immigrant-reliant communities have seen a sharp drop in spending, affecting families and local economies alike.

Khan noted that many families have cut back on expenses, delaying or canceling essential purchases, further depressing the local economy. “I voted for Trump because I believed he would strengthen the economy and help small businesses like mine grow. We expected progress, but instead we’re seeing fear, retreat, and a decline in activity. The very workers our industries rely on are disappearing, not because they don’t want to work, but because they’re afraid,” he said.

Trump’s immigration orders face multiple lawsuits. Civil rights groups say expanded expedited removal violates due process, while courts have blocked his birthright citizenship order as “blatantly unconstitutional.” A judge also warned the administration showed “willful disregard” of a prior ruling by deporting migrants under a little-used wartime law.

A July report from the American Immigration Council argues that enforcement has trampled basic constitutional rights. It points to ICE practices that, critics say, undermine protections in the First, Fourth, and Fifth Amendments, including free speech, protection from unlawful searches, and the right to due process.

*Names changed to ensure privacy