It Could Happen Here – An Inside Look at the Asylum Process

Podcast: It Could Happen Here by Cool Zone Media & iHeartPodcasts
Date: September 22, 2025
Host: James Stout
Guest: Francis (spouse of asylum seeker Amos)

Episode Overview

This episode offers a deeply personal, firsthand account of the U.S. asylum and immigration system through the eyes of Francis, whose husband Amos is currently navigating asylum proceedings amid intensifying policy shifts. The conversation exposes the procedural complexities, shifting political climate, and psychological fallout faced by asylum-seeking families under the current administration. It serves as both a narrative of lived experience and a critical review of systemic failures.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Family’s Immigration Story and Asylum Claim

• Background: Francis met Amos in Hollywood; the couple moved to Tunisia for better living conditions and family support.
• Activism in Tunisia: Amos was involved in pro-democracy movements and anti-corruption organizing, leading to harassment, arrest, and physical violence by authorities as the political situation worsened under the new regime.
• Flight to the U.S.: Safety concerns forced Francis and the children to return to the U.S. alone, expecting Amos to follow via visa.
• Visa Difficulties: The U.S. embassy repeatedly denied Amos, resulting in a 9-month separation.
• Trek to the Border & Asylum: Amos undertook a dangerous route through South America, eventually presenting himself for asylum at the border, as legal, safe alternatives were closed.
• Slow and Costly Process: Francis details how "the immigration system is broken...it takes years and years and tons and tons of money" (Francis, 06:42). She underscores the myth of “just doing it the right way."
  • Quote:

    “When you’re fleeing a country or a situation where you’re in danger, there is no other option. There’s nowhere to go back.”
    — Francis (07:01)

2. Legal Proceedings & Systemic Obstacles

• Multiple Court Hearings: Five master hearings, cycling through lawyers due to cost and scarcity; "it is almost impossible to get a pro bono lawyer anymore" (07:33).
• Checking in with ICE: Routine and cooperative check-ins at first, with notable changes in process and tone following the new administration.
• New Detention & Monitoring Regimes: Under Trump's administration, Amos was referred to ISAP (migrant supervision contractor), required to install a monitoring app, undergo surprise visits, and adhere to strict check-ins (08:29–09:13).
• Changes in Hearing Protocols:
  • Suddenly, Amos was summoned for an in-person court date despite a previous hearing being scheduled for 2028; the respondent (Amos) is now required to appear physically, bypassing standard virtual options for represented cases (10:47–11:54).
  • Both Francis and their lawyer read this as a strategy to facilitate case dismissal and immediate detention, stripping due process.
  • Quote:

    "They drop your case. So now it’s dismissed...you’re just here illegally and then they sometimes [are] waiting for you in the hallway or outside the building to take you to ICE detention." — Francis (11:35)

• Bond Hearing Rights Removed: A recent policy change eliminates the right to a bond hearing, meaning detention could be indefinite (12:40).

3. Family Impact and Community Tension

• Community Isolation: Living in a conservative town, visible hostility (flags, rhetoric) creates insecurity. Children are in therapy to cope with the trauma of their sudden move and fear of losing their father (13:54–14:34).
• Amos’ Contributions: Despite uncertainty, Amos volunteers locally and works thanks to a recently granted work permit.
• Uncertainty and Fear:
  • The looming threat of detention is emotionally crushing, with little recourse for information, communication, or release if it occurs.
  • Quote:

    “He has no criminal record whatsoever. He has not broken any immigration laws...he presented himself for asylum when you are coming from a country...where he was being harassed.” — Francis (15:09–16:04)

• No Weight to Family Bonds or Good Standing: The system is described as categorically dismissive of familial ties, evidence, or integration, instead tethered to rigid and opaque policy shifts.

4. Systemic Changes and Political Climate

• Case Dismissal & Expedited Removal:
  • Host James clarifies the federal policy shift: many are having their cases dismissed only to be placed into expedited removal, entailing forced detention and an unreachably high bar to prove “credible fear of torture.”
  • Quote:

    “You can be a US Citizen married to a non-US Citizen. This can still happen to you. It can happen to anyone who is not a citizen in this country right now.” — James (23:00)

• Conservative Neighbors and Social Isolation:
  • The family limits transparency, fearing community betrayal or reporting.
  • Anecdotes reveal how the children internalize fear and seek ways to “hide” their father’s ethnicity/appearance (e.g., “Can Dada just cover up his skin?” — Daughter, 26:09).
• Political Rhetoric and Disconnection:
  • Francis expresses frustration at acquaintances who support anti-immigrant policies yet profess kindness locally, highlighting the disconnect between political allegiance and real human impact (25:00–27:21).
  • The pernicious influence of conservative media and the reluctance of mainstream Democrats to oppose anti-immigrant sentiment are discussed.

5. Hopelessness by Design

• Legal Limbo and Bureaucratic Stonewalling:
  • Sponsorship petitions to USCIS move at glacial pace—Francis’ case countdown went from '1 week' left to an 'indefinite' wait overnight (20:58–21:01).
• Self-Deportation and the Threat of Detention:
  • The system’s opacity and cruelty are designed to demoralize and induce 'self-deportation'—to make people give up and leave voluntarily despite the risk.
  • Quote:

    “The system is designed to make you feel hopeless and just to, as they call it, self-deportation.” — James (39:46)

• Activists Silenced:
  • Amos, a lifelong activist, is now compelled to stay quiet, fearing retaliation and endangering remaining pathways to safety.

6. Broader Reflections, Solidarity, and Calls to Action

• Ways to Help:
  • Francis urges donations to the ACLU and direct support for affected families; she stresses the importance of personal connection, gratitude, and kindness toward immigrants in daily life (36:34).
  • Quote:

    “Get to know people…even, like, sometimes I see a Hispanic person in a grocery store, I just want to tell them, thank you for being here. I’m glad you’re here.” — Francis (36:45)

• Structural Appeal:
  • Discussion of the need for systemic change, including more vocal celebrity and political advocacy, as peaceful protest alone has proven inadequate (40:53-41:20).
• Empathy and American Values:
  • Concluding reflections challenge listeners to rediscover human empathy, to resist the narrative that suffering is not their problem, and to care about their neighbors regardless of origin (44:49–45:01).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “You know, people who say, ‘Oh, just do it the right way.’ It’s not that simple.”
  — Francis (06:52)
• “[The plan is] what they’ve been doing now is when you go to court, they drop your case...[then] sometimes waiting for you in the hallway...to take you to ICE detention.”
  — Francis (11:35)
• “They should be looking at every single case individually and have a judge make a decision. That’s the whole point of it.”
  — Francis (16:51)
• “You can be a US Citizen married to a non-US Citizen. This can still happen to you. It can happen to anyone who is not a citizen in this country right now.”
  — James (23:00)
• “My daughter even said, can’t Dada just cover up his skin?...She was just thinking, like, was he gonna wear a parka?”
  — Francis (26:09)
• “[The immigration] system is designed to make you feel hopeless and just to, as they call it, self deportation.”
  — James (39:46)
• “No children deserve the horrors of this planet. We’re actually a lot luckier than a lot of other children...But at the same time, they’re our children, and this is a problem we’re dealing with...”
  — Francis (45:40)
• “A society that says ‘it’s not my problem’ is not one that any of us should want to live in.”
  — James (44:56)

Important Timestamps

• 03:07: Episode and guest introduction
• 03:41–07:00: Family’s backstory and initial experience in Tunisia
• 07:02–08:05: Visa barriers and the journey to the U.S. border
• 08:29–09:41: Surveillance, check-ins, and procedural escalation under new administration
• 10:47–12:40: Unusual court notice, forced in-person appearance, and loss of bond hearing rights
• 13:54: Impact on children; therapy and community tensions
• 16:50–17:09: System’s disregard for family ties and evidence
• 20:58–21:01: Glacial pace of legal sponsorship proceedings
• 23:00–23:12: Explanation of case dismissal and expedited removal
• 25:00–27:21: Community alienation and family’s caution in social interactions
• 31:00–32:34: Racial disparities in immigration enforcement
• 36:34–38:13: Calls for solidarity and practical ways to help
• 39:46: Systemic hopelessness and ‘self-deportation’
• 41:20: Appeal for bolder advocacy and support
• 44:49: Emphasis on empathy and communal responsibility
• 46:29–47:04: Family’s determination to stay together

Tone & Style

• Raw, empathetic personal narrative and analytical breakdown.
• The hosts and guest adopt a humanizing, urgent, and occasionally sardonic tone, with moments of emotional vulnerability and calls for solidarity.

Summary Takeaway

This episode lays bare the chaotic, punitive, and dehumanizing state of the U.S. asylum process. Through Francis’ emotional testimony, it critiques the escalation of anti-immigrant policy—where due process is eroded, families live in fear, and even those with deep community ties and spotless records are rendered powerless and unsafe. It closes with a call for empathy, advocacy, and direct support for those enmeshed in a system driven by political will rather than justice or humanity.