Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has recently deported several mothers and their US-born children, including a 4-year-old suffering from a rare form of cancer, raising concerns over the handling of deportations and the rights of US citizen children.
Three children, aged 2, 4, and 7, who are US citizens, were deported along with their mothers, who were undocumented immigrants. One of the mothers, who is pregnant, was also deported with her 2-year-old daughter. The deportations occurred despite protests from legal groups, who argue that ICE conducted these removals hastily and without proper legal processes.
According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the National Immigration Project, the families were arrested during routine check-ins with ICE officers and deported within a matter of days. They described the treatment as an abuse of power, with no opportunity for the mothers to consult with legal counsel or communicate with their families. “What we saw from ICE over the last several days is horrifying and baffling. Families have been ripped apart unnecessarily,” said Gracie Willis of the National Immigration Project.
One of the deported children, a 4-year-old with metastatic cancer, was sent without medical treatment, violating basic care protocols. “Families have been ripped apart unnecessarily,” added Willis. The National Immigration Project and other organizations expressed alarm over ICE’s actions, calling them “illegal and inhumane.”
In one high-profile case, a 2-year-old girl was deported to Honduras despite her father’s objections. US district judge Terry Doughty has raised questions about the deportation, noting that the child’s US citizenship had not been adequately considered in the process. In a court order, Doughty wrote, “The government contends that this is all okay because the mother wishes that the child be deported with her. But the court doesn’t know that.” A hearing is scheduled for May 16 to address concerns that the US government unlawfully deported a citizen child without due process.
In Florida, another mother, Heidy Sánchez, was detained during a scheduled check-in at an ICE office in Tampa and deported to Cuba within two days. Sánchez, a breastfeeding mother of a 1-year-old daughter with health issues, was not allowed to contest the deportation, according to her attorney, Claudia Cañizares. “I think they’re following orders that they need to remove a certain amount of people by day and they don’t care,” Cañizares said, criticising ICE for ignoring Sánchez’s case despite her strong humanitarian claims for staying in the US
The deportations come amid President Donald Trump’s hardline stance on immigration, which has faced intense criticism from legal experts and rights groups. Trump has defended his administration’s actions, saying in a recent social media post, “We know who the criminals are, and we must get them out of the USA. — and FAST!” He also argued that due process for millions of undocumented migrants was impractical.
Federal courts have clashed with the Trump administration’s immigration policies, with several judges questioning whether proper legal procedures were followed in deporting US citizen children. The case has further intensified debates about executive overreach and the protection of immigrant rights.
