According to figures released by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Obama administration removed 368,644 immigrants from the country in 2013, the smallest number of deportations by ICE since the end of President George W. Bush’s administration.
Since the beginning of the Obama administration, ICE has removed a record number of more than 1.9 million immigrants. However, ICE Acting Director John Sandweg said of the 368,644 deportations specifically last year, 235,093 of those immigrants were arrested at or near the U.S. border with Mexico, demonstrating great improvement in the system for deportations.
Immigration reform advocates have long pushed the administration to stop deportations, asking that they focus on deporting those who have committed serious crimes and not families who are simply missing documentation.
According to a survey from the Pew Research Hispanic Trends Project, U.S. Latinos think it is more important to be able to live and work in the U.S. without the threat of deportation than it is to have a pathway to citizenship. Although the recent ICE figures have shown progress in the system, a great deal of uncertainty is still prevalent among groups and activists protesting deportations around the country.
“People on all sides will look at these numbers with a great deal of skepticism,” said Pablo Alvarado, Executive Director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON). “These numbers may represent political calculus for the beltway but for immigrant families, they represent our parents, siblings, and loved ones.”
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