Migrant Families Fear Separation Risks if Trump is Re-elected | 60 Minutes

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Former President Donald Trump’s commitment to instigate widespread deportations in the event of his re-election has raised significant concerns about the potential for family separations.

Monica Camacho Perez, who moved to the United States illegally from Mexico over two decades ago, has built her life in Baltimore. She works as an English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher for immigrant adults and in the local public high schools.

“We are a regular family, just like anybody else,” she remarked. “We go to church, hold jobs, and contribute to our community by paying taxes.”

Camacho Perez is one of many undocumented individuals who arrived in the U.S. as children and currently benefit from the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which shields them from deportation.

“As the only one under DACA in my family, I feel a heavy weight,” she noted. “My brothers are not protected, nor are my parents. They have children born here, so if they were to be deported, what would happen to those kids?”

Would Mass Deportations Lead to Family Separation?

In discussions about possible mass deportations, Tom Homan, who directed immigration enforcement in the initial 18 months of Trump’s presidency, claimed that deportations could be executed without tearing families apart. “Certainly, families can be deported together,” he stated.

There are currently over four million U.S.-born children living with undocumented parents, illustrating the family ties that could be disrupted by such policies.

When confronted about the implications of forcing children to leave their home country, Homan responded, “Their parents entered the country illegally; they had children while knowing they were undocumented. This is a crisis that they created.”

During his tenure at ICE, one of the most contentious policies resulted in the separation of over 5,000 migrant children from their parents at the border due to prosecution for illegal entry into the U.S.

When asked if he was responsible for initiating family separations, Homan insisted, “That’s not accurate. I did sign a memo, but not writing it. My intention was to save lives. I believed that if we prosecuted those entering illegally, it might deter them from coming.”

Trump has indicated that should he win another term, Homan would assist him in the administration. When queried about the possibility of reinstating family separation policies, Homan was uncertain, stating, “I am not aware of any formal policy regarding family separations.”

However, he mentioned that family separation policies should be a consideration in future immigration enforcement discussions.

This situation is complicated by a court settlement between the federal government and the American Civil Liberties Union, which prohibits the government from separating families at the border for the next eight years solely for prosecuting parents who entered the U.S. illegally.

“I Can’t Imagine Life Without Them”

Back in Baltimore, Camacho Perez reflects on the potential consequences if her parents were to be deported. Despite considering Baltimore her home and owning property there, she has contemplated returning to Mexico with her family if that were to happen.