Up First (NPR) – The Families Hiding from ICE

Date: December 7, 2025
Host: Ayesha Rascoe
Reporter: Jasmine Garsd
Guest Host: B.A. Parker (Code Switch)
Main Theme:
An on-the-ground look at the everyday decisions, fears, and sacrifices of undocumented immigrant families living under the threat of deportation—and the extraordinary steps they're taking to keep their children safe in America.

Episode Overview

This episode of The Sunday Story dives deep into how undocumented families are enduring life under intense immigration enforcement during the Trump administration. NPR immigration reporter Jasmine Garsd follows families in Maryland and Washington, D.C., examining the psychological toll of living in fear, the pressures leading some to consider "self-deportation," and the rise of emergency guardianship—citizens stepping in to safeguard undocumented parents’ American-born children should the former be detained and deported.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Life on Lockdown: The “Summer of Nothing”

• Setting: Rural Maryland; family of six living in heightened fear
• Lockdown Reality:
  • Entire summer spent indoors, children as young as one, as old as twelve, unable to attend activities or outings (02:36–10:51).
  • Quote (Mother "M"):
    "We spent it locked down... We didn't go out. The weather was bad." (03:00)
  • Impact on Kids:
    • Eldest daughter, Kay (12), pulled from STEM summer camp.
    • Seven-year-old daughter, “L”, experiencing panic attacks, skipped school due to anxiety about parents’ potential deportation.
    • Quote (L):
      "My mom tell me it's gonna be okay. I worry till something will happen to her, like something won't get her." (05:04, 01:00)

ICE Encounters and the Shadow of Self-Deportation

• Family Tensions:
  • M’s husband wants to self-deport; M refuses, determined not to uproot their U.S.-born children.
  • Husband at heightened risk due to his public job as a landscaper—hides in his car during ICE sightings.
  • Family retreats further after ICE presence—children aware and responsive to every threat and change.
    • Quote (M’s seven-year-old):
      “…they were working, ICE came there... our dad sent us a message... how did that make you feel? Sad." (08:56)

The Constant Fear: Schools, Status, and Uncertainty

• Fear of Public Exposure:
  • Parents anxious about sending children to school, unsure if ICE could act there (11:39).
  • Legal Clarification (Elora Mukherjee, Columbia Law):
    • "Agents need a warrant to go into a school. Parents and children cannot be asked about their immigration status by the school." (12:19)
    • Real-life counterexample: armed ICE officers pursued someone into a Chicago preschool—showing the reality can feel “blurry” and frightening for many.

Emergency Guardianship: A Desperate Plan

• M’s Precaution:
  • After a summer of anxiety, M arranges emergency guardianship for her children with a friend:
    • Quote (Jasmine Garsd):
      "She did something a lot of parents never consider doing—she reached out to a friend who is an American citizen and started the paperwork to give emergency guardianship in case she or her husband get picked up by ICE." (14:33)

Deeper Dive: Arrangements to Keep Families Together

Discussion: Jasmine Garsd and BA Parker
(Timestamps: ~16:33–23:20)

What is Emergency Guardianship?

• Definition:
  Legal paperwork naming a trusted local, usually a U.S. citizen, as guardian to a child in the event their parents are detained/deported by ICE.
• Why families do it:
  A way to reclaim some control and safety; the process is emotionally wrenching.
  • Quote (Parent, via Jasmine):
    "I'm not happy, but I'm relieved… that's one less thing to worry about if there is something to worry about." (17:14)

Perspective of Emergency Guardians

• Case Study:
  American mom in DC, approached by the Honduran parents of her son’s best friend (17-year-old US citizen):
  • The Request:
    "We could get detained any minute now, and if we do, I want to ask you if you would be the temporary guardian of our son. Don’t feel pressured... We are putting our son's life in your hands. He is seventeen, he needs to finish high school... he will need guidance." (20:49)
  • Guardian’s response:
    "Yes, of course, right? Like not even…not a question, not a moment’s hesitation. We love them." (21:07)
    • Describes seeing happy families and feeling "deeply sad and sorry that this is a conversation that we even need to have." (21:29)
    • Still hopes this shared challenge might "bring people closer together if we let it."
  • The family hides this arrangement even from extended relatives to protect the undocumented parents (23:48).

The Legal Landscape—Advice for Families

• Growth in Guardianship Arrangements:
  Jasmine hears more families arranging guardianship, though numbers are unclear because few go public.
• Attorneys’ Advice (Ginger Miranda, Central Florida Hispanic Bar Association):
  • Make formal, legal plans, not just verbal agreements.
  • "Have the paperwork drawn out… don’t go and tell your cousin ‘hey take the kids’... If you do not prepare, the consequences can be really serious." (22:59)
  • Without legal preparation, children risk ending up in foster care—a nightmare scenario for many parents.

Human Toll and Resilience

• Emotional Fallout:

  • The Honduran mother—too pained to speak, suffering headaches and chest pains from the stress.
  • The father:
    "I always knew this time would come…this country is for no one, it's for Americans, the white ones. …Do you really think this is what we wanted…to abandon our child in another country? Do you think this was the plan? Who would want this…? Nobody." (25:04–25:41)

• Small Sources of Comfort:

  • “We try to keep it a little lighter around the dinner table…watch television like the Great British Baking Show.” (24:05)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• "My Whatsapp is filled with ghosts." — Jasmine Garsd on the eerie frequency of contacts disappearing amid ICE crackdowns. (06:09)
• "We spent it locked down… we didn't go out." — Maryland mom “M” on an entire summer indoors. (03:00)
• "We’re not even going to work right now... there are literally checkpoints on both sides of his street." — Honduran father in D.C. describing the intensity of neighborhood targeting. (19:11–19:34)
• "Do you really think this is what we wanted… who would want this?" — Honduran father, reflecting the agony of potentially leaving a child behind. (25:27–25:41)
• "It's not all jokes…" — Jasmine, on the coping mechanisms families deploy amid anxiety, blending humor with heartbreak. (10:26)

Important Segments and Timestamps

• The “Summer of Nothing” begins: 02:36
• How ICE presence disrupts families: 07:41–09:24
• School anxieties & legal advice: 11:20–12:19
• Emergency guardianship decision: 14:33–15:08, 16:34–23:20
• DC family’s guardianship experience: 18:29–24:05
• The emotional conclusion with the Honduran parents: 24:22–25:41

Takeaways

• Living on alert: For many undocumented parents, each day brings agonizing choices—risk being visible or hunker down, disrupt kids' lives or keep them safe.
• Community support is critical, but legal safeguards are vital to prevent children’s displacement into foster care.
• Emergency guardianship is on the rise—but making those arrangements is emotionally wrenching for all involved.
• The experience is one of constant psychological strain mitigated only by moments of humor, neighborly acts, and hope for togetherness amid adversity.

This episode is a powerful, intimate portrait of families making unimaginable choices—grappling with what it means to belong, to care for those you love, and to find resilience in the shadow of deportation.