Austin Kocher, PhD 🌎

Political & legal geographer studying the theories, laws, and institutional practices behind immigration controls. Assistant Professor at Syracuse University. Living in Baltimore.  #geography #immigration #baltimore #syracuseuniversity #data #writing #refugees #borders #law #fedi22

More Information: https://linktr.ee/austinkocher
Newsletter: https://austinkocher.substack.com
Website: https://www.austinkocher.com/
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Last Notes

2026-02-05 16:41:01 GMT

DHS and ICE quietly purchased a massive Berks County warehouse for $87.4M. The facility has been identified as a possible ICE detention center—just two years after the county closed its family detention center.
https://whyy.org/articles/berks-county-warehouse-ice-detention-center-trump/

2026-02-05 13:11:01 GMT

The Maryland House moved forward with legislation to prohibit local police from cooperating with ICE under 287(g), brushing aside Republican amendments. Final votes in both chambers are expected Tuesday.
https://marylandmatters.org/2026/02/02/house-brushes-aside-gop-amendments-advances-immigration-enforcement-restriction/

2026-02-04 13:11:01 GMT

ICE agents were spotted in the Lower East Side taking photos and trying to access the back of a coffee shop. A barista asked them to leave, and they did. Now elected officials are going door to door teaching workers their rights.
https://www.amny.com/news/politicians-preparing-lower-east-side-for-ice/

2026-01-30 16:07:02 GMT

ICE Withholds Congressionally Mandated Detention Data
In the midst of heated budget negotiations over immigration enforcement, ICE flouts Congress's prior mandate to publish timely detention data.
https://austinkocher.substack.com/p/ice-withholds-congressionally-mandated

2026-01-29 21:16:01 GMT

The Dispatch reports on new Siena/NYT polling: Americans now disapprove of Trump's overall immigration handling 58% to 40%. That's a 12-point net decrease since September. But border handling still gets majority support (50-46%). Voters are distinguishing between the two. 🧵

2026-01-29 21:16:01 GMT

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Overall Trump approval among registered voters is down to 40%, from 50% at the start of his second term. The economy remains the top drag, but aggressive street-level immigration enforcement "surely doesn't seem to be helping him politically."

2026-01-29 21:16:01 GMT

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John McCormack traveled to Chicago in October and found ICE "creating a climate of fear and confusion" with viral enforcement videos while "failing to actually do much to accomplish its stated goal of targeting criminal illegal aliens." The polling now reflects that gap.

2026-01-27 19:29:45 GMT

Border Patrol shot someone today, details still forthcoming. That's a lot of DHS shootings this year, I'm starting to wonder if gutting all of the oversight mechanisms might have been a bad thing.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/person-shot-border-patrol-involved-arizona-rcna256137

2026-01-24 03:43:37 GMT

US immigration agents detain two-year-old Minnesota girl: ‘depravity beyond words’
DHS detain a toddler and her father on Thursday and fly them to Texas before returning child on judge’s order
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jan/23/us-immigration-two-year-old-minnesota-girl?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=bluesky&CMP=bsky_gu

2026-01-16 16:41:01 GMT

ICE pulled a Dallas prosecutor after he was tied to a racist X account praising white supremacy. Now he’s back in immigration court with no public update on the investigation. This raises serious questions about fairness and due process.
https://www.texasobserver.org/ice-prosecutor-racist-account-back-at-immigration-court/

2026-01-14 17:05:29 GMT

If you were looking for a single unifying interpretive framework to help make sense of this administration‘s actions, consider that Trump is actively trying to destroy our country rather than save it.

2026-01-12 16:41:01 GMT

After the killing of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE officer, mass protests erupted in Minneapolis and across the U.S. Conflicting official accounts and limits on congressional oversight are intensifying calls for accountability.
https://www.archyworldys.com/minneapolis-ice-shooting-protests-calls-for-justice/

2026-01-11 00:44:21 GMT

ICE just reported its fourth in-custody death of 2026. It’s only January 10.
No news outlets have reported on this yet.

2026-01-10 13:15:27 GMT

In a deadly start to the year, ICE announced the agency’s THIRD detention death of 2026 late Friday night. People are dying in detention at a rate of one every three days right now.
https://open.substack.com/pub/detentionkills/p/3-deaths-in-ice-custody-in-the-1st?r=cg7zb&utm_medium=ios&shareImageVariant=overlay

2026-01-07 19:29:20 GMT

ICE shot and killed a woman in a vehicle at point blank range today in Minneapolis. Make no mistake: this death is not only on the reckless officer at the scene, but on President Trump. Stop fomenting chaos and violence. Get your henchmen under control. This was an avoidable tragedy.

2026-01-06 16:41:04 GMT

ICE is detaining 68,442 people, the highest number ever recorded. The fastest growth in detention isn’t among people with serious criminal convictions, but people with no criminal history.
Full data and analysis on my substack: https://austinkocher.substack.com/p/record-number-68442-immigrants-will
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/115/849/144/717/963/642/original/718d7fa78497c847.png

2026-01-04 01:28:14 GMT

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The scale: ~300 people are returned to Honduras daily. Many children left behind are US citizens. One mother was separated from her 2-month-old baby. Another from a disabled child who depends entirely on her care.
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/115/834/230/038/607/268/original/8db301d3ca5a7e95.png

2026-01-04 01:28:09 GMT

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Key finding: Most parents said ICE never asked if they had children when arrested or before deportation. Some signed written statements requesting to be deported with their children, yet were removed alone. This violates ICE's own 2025 Detained Parents Directive.
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/115/834/229/987/631/173/original/3c4372f6ff74ac2c.png

2026-01-04 01:28:07 GMT

New documentation from Honduras: Over 6 days interviewing deportees, researchers found more than half of parents were deported without being given an opportunity to bring their children with them. Most deportees were longtime US residents, not recent border crossers. 🧵
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/115/834/230/108/719/632/original/50e1a6763f58a887.png

2026-01-03 01:28:00 GMT

A graduate student was seized by masked ICE agents and held for weeks. And although a judge ordered her release but ICE didn’t let her go. One lawyer waited outside a detention cell, unsure if the law would matter.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/31/nyregion/ozturk-lawyer-detention-release.html

2026-01-02 21:36:30 GMT

In case you need more evidence that ICE is a lawless agency, here's more: a lawsuit over inhumane detention conditions on floor 6 of ICE building in San Francisco resulted in a preliminary injunction. So ICE moved detainees to floor 5, claiming that skirts the injunction. Judge says, no way.
https://www.courthousenews.com/judge-rips-trump-bid-to-dodge-humane-treatment-order-at-ice-facility/
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/115/827/657/206/113/157/original/3d8e34b13bc7ea8e.png

2026-01-02 16:41:03 GMT

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This reflects something essential about surviving systems designed to exhaust you. When the asylum process demands constant mental energy, the ability to reclaim moments of peace becomes not a luxury but a survival skill.

2026-01-02 16:41:02 GMT

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The secret: compartmentalization. Work on your case when you're working on it. But when you're not, put it away completely. Don't let negative thoughts invade moments that could be positive. You need the good times to get through the bad.

2026-01-02 16:41:01 GMT

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It's not just resilience, though his clients show that in abundance. It's not courage, though many stood up to murderous regimes. It's not even optimism, though they maintain it despite constant attacks. It's something more specific.

2026-01-02 16:41:01 GMT

New Year's reflection from immigration attorney Jason Dzubow: What can asylum seekers teach us about happiness? After years representing clients under constant stress, he's identified the key trait that helps people endure. 🧵

2026-01-01 23:33:19 GMT

An oldie but a goodie. Thanks, @newyorker.
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/115/822/454/225/159/177/original/6524b229af91ed6e.png

2025-12-29 20:26:13 GMT

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Excellent reporting by Lydia DePillis & Campbell Robertson documenting these changes across Iowa, PA, and beyond. Essential reading for understanding where immigration policy is headed and what it means for communities nationwide. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/28/business/us-immigration-trump-1920s.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

2025-12-29 20:26:12 GMT

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Stephen Miller praises 1920s shutdown as producing an "undisputed global superpower." But that era was driven by eugenics & nativism, and meant economic stagnation in communities needing workers. Restricting immigration doesn't restore a mythical past, it just creates instability

2025-12-29 20:26:11 GMT

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This reveals a fundamental tension: we've built systems dependent on immigrant labor (healthcare, construction, food processing, childcare) while pursuing policies treating those workers as disposable. You can't dismantle essential workforce w/out destabilizing systems we rely on

2025-12-29 20:26:11 GMT

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Construction firms can't find carpenters. Hospitals losing doctors/nurses. Child care centers short-staffed. Marshalltown IA (19% foreign-born) and Lancaster PA both depend on immigrants for growth. One manager: "If he can't stay, I'll have a hard time finding someone else."

2025-12-29 20:26:10 GMT

Important NYT reporting on what 1920s-level immigration restrictions look like now. Net immigration down to 450k/year from 2-3M under Biden. Admin aims to shrink foreign-born population from 14.8% to closer to 4.7% (the 1970 low). Economic contradictions are stark. 🧵 #immigrationrestrictions #stephenmiller

2025-12-27 14:39:01 GMT

DHS says raids target “violent criminals.” But CNN reports three parents with no criminal history were detained until judges stepped in and freed them. Hundreds of similar cases are now working their way through the courts.
https://edition.cnn.com/2025/12/26/us/chicago-released-migrants-dhs

2025-12-27 13:11:00 GMT

A court dismissed all local charges against two brothers arrested in Ohio. ICE is still holding them, and an immigration judge refused to even consider bond.
https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/brothers-arrested-locally-remain-ice-custody-despite-dismissals

2025-12-26 01:28:02 GMT

Catholics represent fewer than 20% of U.S. adults, however, they make up 61% of the population at risk of deportation. Trump’s immigration crackdown is disproportionately hitting Catholic communities.
https://chico.newsreview.com/2025/12/24/trumps-war-on-ice-fearing-catholics/

2025-12-25 13:11:01 GMT

I’ve been worried about this. People who signed up for a US ‘self-deportation’ scheme say their payoffs were delayed, misdirected or never arrived – leaving them empty-handed in their home countries.

2025-12-24 18:34:14 GMT

While it is a sad reality that we have to fight for a living wage for working Americans, what we really should be talking about is how we create a thriving wage for all Americans. A prosperous economy should mean that more people get to live a full and meaningful life, not just barely surviving.

2025-12-24 18:12:01 GMT

A judge ruled that members of Congress can show up at ICE detention centers without warning. The goal is to see real conditions, not a cleaned-up version.
https://www.kjzz.org/fronteras-desk/2025-12-22/members-of-congress-can-make-unannounced-visits-to-ice-facilities-for-oversight-judge-rules

2025-12-24 16:41:04 GMT

Someone died in ICE custody at the Moshannon detention center. Advocates responded by blocking roads in Clearfield County to make sure the death wasn’t ignored.
https://radio.wpsu.org/2025-12-22/death-moshannon-ice-detention-center-advocates-shut-down-clearfield-county-philipsburg

2025-12-24 01:28:00 GMT

Applying for a green card now comes with a new fear.
Axios reports ICE officers are being brought into green card interviews under Trump, blurring the line between immigration services and enforcement.
https://www.axios.com/2025/12/23/trump-ice-green-card-interviews-immigration

2025-12-23 16:41:02 GMT

Judge orders ICE to release a U.S. Army veteran from detention, calling the continued custody unlawful.
https://us.headtopics.com/news/judge-orders-release-of-us-army-veteran-from-ice-detention-77529852

2025-12-16 01:28:01 GMT

A Trump-appointed immigration judge says he was fired mid-workday, and the cases on his docket were suddenly put on hold. Another former judge says the people removed were known for giving immigrants due process. Newsweek calls it a “hostile takeover.”
https://us.headtopics.com/news/fired-judges-speak-out-on-trump-s-hostile-takeover-of-77177320

2025-12-15 13:11:02 GMT

Illinois just passed a law that limits civil ICE arrests near courthouses, hospitals, colleges, day cares, and schools. It also lets people sue if immigration agents violate their constitutional rights.
Read: https://www.mystateline.com/news/local-news/pritzker-signs-sweeping-sanctuary-protections-for-undocumented-immigrants-into-law/

2025-12-08 15:28:01 GMT

Palantir is now helping ICE run mass deportations. This a big flip from their old “progressive” stance. The workers are warning the tech is being used to build an authoritarian system and how it affects real people
🔗 https://biz.chosun.com/en/en-international/2025/12/04/OEZBYIOSWBAFDDYOZS22GJODWY/

2025-12-02 15:50:16 GMT

Live Breakdown of New Immigration Enforcement Data Today: Let's Democratize Immigration Data
The Deportation Data Project released new data last night. Follow along while I identify important trends, unpack key findings, and respond to your questions and comments.
https://austinkocher.substack.com/p/live-breakdown-of-new-immigration

2025-11-30 18:12:00 GMT

They are making detention so bad that people beg to be deported. Think about that.
Immigrants begging to be deported are languishing in ICE’s Aurora detention facility. Deportation, once seen as a loss, is much needed relief from detention for some.
https://coloradosun.com/2025/11/18/immigrants-asking-for-deportation-ices-aurora-detention-facility/

2025-11-28 21:16:00 GMT

ICE arrested military spouses at green-card interviews. Think about that: people married to U.S. service members, following the legal process, pulled into detention. If even military families aren’t safe, then no one is.
Read: https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/us-news/ice-arrests-military-spouses-during-green-card-interviews-families-shocked-101764295959544.html

2025-11-24 21:16:00 GMT

Kristi Noem says 223 people were arrested in a multi-state roadway operation with Indiana police. Advocates say these sweeps often target workers and long-time residents.
Read: https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/10/30/noem-announces-223-immigration-arrests-in-roadway-blitz-with-indiana-state-police/

2025-11-22 14:28:55 GMT

The official Department of Justice recruitment page is saying the quiet part out loud: they don’t care about law, they only care about deportations. Flagrant. False. Possibly illegal. This is why many of us have advocated for an independent immigration court for years.
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/115/593/821/105/945/095/original/1b2e8a0e65498c78.jpeg

2025-11-09 01:28:00 GMT

ICE is being sued by survivors of human trafficking and domestic abuse, including Merlos, who was detained with her children and her 71-year-old mother, according to the complaint.
Read more at: https://www.sacbee.com/news/nation-world/national/article312574817.html

2025-11-08 13:11:00 GMT

Bad sign for what could be coming to other FOIA offices: Dept of Energy issues notice that it will close pending FOIA requests UNLESS the requester affirmatively emails the agency to confirm interest. Absolutely unlawful. AO sued.
https://americanoversight.org/american-oversight-sues-trump-administration-over-unlawful-effort-to-shut-down-foia-requests/

2025-11-04 13:11:01 GMT

NEW: Rep. JanelleBynum & other members of Congress are demanding answers from DHS Secretary Noem on 'alarming reports' of federal agent misconduct.
Learn more here: https://bynum.house.gov/media/press-releases/bynum-joins-demanding-answers-secretary-noem-reports-federal-agent-misconduct#:~:text=November%203%2C%202025

2025-10-04 03:13:55 GMT

The level of normalized hatred for marginalized people is off the charts in this country right now.

2025-09-16 14:15:15 GMT

The Women’s Refugee Commission Detention Pregnancy Tracker: A Critical Tool for Documenting the Treatment of Pregnant Women in Immigration Detention
🚨 Have you seen a pregnant woman in ICE custody? Submit a report today. -- Please share widely!
https://austinkocher.substack.com/p/the-womens-refugee-commission-detention

2025-09-12 21:02:53 GMT

Them: "What we need in politics is good old-fashioned public debate."
Charlie Kirk: "Debate topic: Was slavery a good idea or a bad idea? Black folks, your opinions are biased so you don't get to say anything."
Ezra Klein: "Charlie Kirk was doing politics the right way."

2025-09-12 18:25:25 GMT

If you haven’t been following what’s going on in Nepal, it is UNBELIEVABLE. I don’t event know where to begin but between the time you had your morning coffee on Monday and lunch on Friday they just had a total Gen Z-led revolution resulting in the first female PM. Like seriously.

2025-08-11 12:40:03 GMT

AI Comes to Immigration Court: A New EOIR Memo Raises More Questions Than Answers
EOIR Acting Director Sirce Owen says AI is "not prohibited" in immigration court, but the memo signals bigger changes ahead with Trump admin encouraging AI use to accelerate government processes.
https://austinkocher.substack.com/p/ai-comes-to-immigration-court-a-new?utm_source=activity_item

2025-08-10 02:12:25 GMT

It’s amazing how many 1980s sci-fi movies foresaw human-like androids, flying cars, and interstellar travel, but failed to comprehend the truly apocalyptic evolution of human technology: the unrelenting dystopian nightmare of Microsoft Teams.

2025-07-28 14:28:03 GMT

Alexandria's deportation hub reveals the infrastructure behind "mass deportation". This isn't just increased enforcement, it's leveraging detention capacity built over the past decade. Louisiana expanded from 4 to 9 ICE facilities since Trump's first term.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/07/26/alexandria-staging-facility-louisiana-trump-deportation-hub/85322642007/

2025-07-25 18:00:01 GMT

Can't believe I still have to say this, but ... It has been 3,108 days, or 8.5 years, since ICE has had a properly vetted and congressionally-confirmed director as required by law.

2025-07-19 20:16:10 GMT

ICE Arrest Surge in May and June Driven by Immigrants with No Criminal History
In Part 3 of my series on ICE arrest data, I use new data to find (1) a surge in non-criminal ICE arrests and (2) an overall decline in daily arrests in June.
https://austinkocher.substack.com/p/ice-arrest-surge-in-may-and-june

2025-07-19 00:28:09 GMT

Make no mistake, Stephen Miller is flying the Trump plane. His influence now rivals that of any cabinet official. Important portrait below of an unwell man obsessed with power and infected with hate.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/07/opinion/stephen-miller.html

2025-07-16 12:11:37 GMT

Mom calls the police after being a victim of assault only to get deported. I've been telling reporters this for months now: increased immigration enforcement isn't just about criminals, it turns victims into double-victims.
https://www.newsweek.com/mexico-ice-immigrant-illegal-deportation-assault-2098742

2025-07-01 13:39:15 GMT

Asylum Seekers Are Being Arrested During Mandatory ICE Check-Ins
A Portland-area man with a family and work visa received a text ordering him to report to ICE. He was detained and sent to Tacoma, with no release date in sight.
https://www.portlandmercury.com/news/2025/06/30/47900446/asylum-seekers-are-being-arrested-during-mandatory-ice-check-ins

2025-07-01 00:31:24 GMT

Harvard's The Journalist Resource republished my write-up about new ICE arrest data. See the article below:
https://journalistsresource.org/home/how-to-make-sense-of-ice-arrest-data/

2025-06-26 20:44:34 GMT

ICE arrested a 6-year-old boy with leukemia at immigration court. His family is suing.
https://www.tpr.org/border-immigration/2025-06-25/ice-arrested-a-6-year-old-boy-with-leukemia-at-immigration-court-his-family-is-suing?fbclid=IwQ0xDSwLKkD5leHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHmosWyXWPzN3mhpeLd89C9G3IhbarrR8nPly1-we01XBFHKs4OlCAV1PpJas_aem_KLQERyIybV_WWiyX5xqzbA

2025-06-24 13:39:11 GMT

Federal immigration raids across Southern California have been taking workers away from their families. After the initial shock of separation, those left behind are starting to wonder how they’ll pay next month’s rent.
https://laist.com/news/housing-homelessness/los-angeles-ice-immigration-raids-detention-economy-housing-costs-rent

2025-06-20 12:11:24 GMT

CoreCivic signs deal with ICE to reopen Leavenworth detention center. A former corrections officer at the facility described conditions as "horrific."
https://www.kmbc.com/article/ice-signs-deal-with-federal-government-to-re-open-leavenworth-detention-center/65107769

2025-06-19 20:16:25 GMT

The Trump administration’s arrest and attempt to deport the wife and children of Mohamed Sabry Soliman, the Egypt-born man accused of attacking a pro-Israel demonstration in Boulder, Colorado on June 1, marks a new and ominous stage in the American ruling class’ descent into lawlessness. https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/06/07/frvs-j07.html

2025-06-19 17:12:12 GMT

The U.S. dairy industry is grappling with a severe and persistent labor shortage, a challenge that threatens the continuous, year-round operation of dairy farms across the nation. Historically reliant on skilled immigrant workers, the sector faces heightened anxiety amidst renewed national attention on border security and immigration enforcement. https://en.edairynews.com/us-dairys-workforce-crisis-farmers-demand-urgent-immigration-reform/

2025-06-19 14:28:13 GMT

The threat of federal immigration agents raiding orchards in central Washington is causing a labor shortage that has left some Washington producers to leave cherries unpicked or delay their harvests until the fruit overripens and is worth less money.
https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2025/jun/18/washington-cherry-growers-struggle-to-find-pickers/

2025-06-17 15:41:20 GMT

House Republicans are going after the following organizations for providing essential humanitarian support to migrants:
Catholic Charities USA
Council on American-Islamic Relations
Haitian Bridge Alliance
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA)
Global Refuge
Southwest Key Programs
Endeavors
Make the Road New York
https://homeland.house.gov/2025/06/11/chairmen-green-brecheen-launch-probe-into-200-ngos-over-their-use-of-taxpayer-dollars-during-the-biden-harris-border-crisis/

2025-06-13 22:42:11 GMT

President Trump has a longer criminal history than nearly everyone ICE is arresting and detaining, but you don’t see the White House including his list of charges and convictions in every press release now do you.

2025-06-13 17:12:14 GMT

Immigration raid at Omaha meat production plant leaves company officials bewildered. The company president said: “We do everything by the book.”
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/11/immigration-raid-at-omaha-meat-production-plant-leaves-company-officials-bewildered-00398950

2025-06-13 14:28:16 GMT

A 28-year-old U.S. citizen, nine months pregnant, was detained by ICE in California, allegedly shoved during the arrest, and later hospitalized with stomach pains—raising serious concerns about her treatment and the risk to her and her unborn child.
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/cant-fight-back-9-month-pregnant-us-citizen-hospitalised-after-immigration-raid-8641500

2025-06-13 03:01:13 GMT

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are starting to more aggressively target agriculture and food processing facilities around the country as reports over the past week from Nebraska, New Mexico and California highlight. https://farmpolicynews.illinois.edu/2025/06/immigration-raids-targeting-ag-businesses-increase/

2025-06-12 20:16:13 GMT

Multiple Kentucky law enforcement agencies are working with federal immigration authorities to help detain and deport individuals, records obtained by WBKO Investigates show.
https://www.wbko.com/2025/06/10/which-kentucky-agencies-are-working-with-ice/

2025-06-06 12:10:38 GMT

Over 50,000 Immigrants Now Detained, Highest Since 2019
ICE detention numbers are up alongside spike in new detention facilities and new 287(g) agreements. Nearly 25% of detainees now have no criminal histories.
https://austinkocher.substack.com/p/over-50000-immigrants-now-detained

2025-04-22 20:51:45 GMT

In another stunning development, the US has relocated an Iraqi refugee to Rwanda via a new diplomatic arrangement with the country. Story by Marisa Kabas.
https://www.thehandbasket.co/p/us-rwanda-relocates-iraqi-refugee-omar-ameen

2025-04-19 18:10:29 GMT

The Great Human Rights Cover Up Begins
The State Department is axing key sections of the annual Human Rights Reports, including key information about violence against women and people with disabilities. Bukele and Orban stand to benefit.
https://austinkocher.substack.com/p/the-great-human-rights-cover-up-begins

2025-03-16 23:15:03 GMT

Trump is entering full-on authoritarian mode. He has defied several court orders. He has invoked powers that prevent constitutional review. He is targeting minorities without evidence of justification of wrong-doing. Democracy has not been this fragile in our lifetimes and may not survive.

2025-02-10 12:53:09 GMT

"The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppress."
– Frederick Douglass

2025-02-08 04:01:18 GMT

Saying the Thing Out Loud: Trump’s Latest Refugee Order Embraces White Victimhood
While the refugee system is suspended for the rest of the world, a new order from President Trump creates a special exception for white South Africans facing “race-based discrimination.”
https://open.substack.com/pub/austinkocher/p/saying-the-thing-out-loud-trumps

2025-02-06 19:35:27 GMT

Interesting…
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/958/618/563/728/651/original/d9e96585d24297e2.png

2025-02-01 02:06:20 GMT

Severe understaffing at the FAA has already killed far more Americans in 2025 than immigrants, trans people, “Antifa”, and DEI has. Once again, misinformation and prejudice put lives at risk.

2025-01-30 17:01:52 GMT

The Trump administration appears angry this week that legal groups are sharing “know your rights” information with citizens and immigrants across the country. I analyzed dozens of these resources to highlight common themes. ⬇️
https://austinkocher.substack.com/p/a-survey-of-know-your-rights-resources

2025-01-29 03:23:56 GMT

As long as we pretend to call it the Gulf of America, I’m calling Texas “North Mexico”. Deal with it.

2025-01-23 19:02:13 GMT

🚨 BREAKING! A federal judge in Washington correctly ruled that Donald Trump's attempt to abolish birthright citizenship enshrined in the 14th Amendment is an attempt to rewrite the Constitution from the White House.
"I've been on the bench for over four decades, and I can't remember another case where the question presented was this clear," Judge Coughenour said. "This is a blatantly unconstitutional order. Where were the lawyers when this decision was being made?"

2025-01-20 22:40:13 GMT

The 5:00 pm update is up now with MAJOR NEWS: ACLU has already submitted new court filings over the Trump administration's sudden termination of CBP One and all related appointments that migrants have made while complying with US policy. Here we go folks.
https://austinkocher.substack.com/p/trump-ii-day-one-immigration-breakdown

2025-01-02 19:11:02 GMT

Four years ago today.
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/760/341/664/107/202/original/521032dc5c932793.png

2024-12-30 04:14:47 GMT

For the last time: The illegal / legal immigrant distinction is a manufactured crisis designed to mask deeper anxieties about white supremacy and generate support for nativist policies.

2024-12-21 13:01:35 GMT

It never ceases to disappoint me how much of the immigration debate is obsessed with how to prevent people from moving and so little attention on how to build a better world that doesn’t harm people and displace people at such a massive rate. Perspective matters.

2024-12-06 20:12:07 GMT

Don't let them try to convince you that "America is full."
The United States is one of the least densely populated countries in the Global North and we accept one of the smallest per capita numbers of refugees in the world.
We have plenty of space for immigrants. Period.

2024-12-03 21:03:28 GMT

Although higher education itself is not entirely innocent on this, there is an entire segment of a younger generation, mostly of young men, who believe they can bypass the hard work of getting an education by listening to podcasts and watching YouTube videos. It’s just not true.

2024-11-27 20:01:08 GMT

And just like that, no one was talking about "the Democrats importing illegals to steal the election". It's almost as if that was an entirely made-up conspiracy theory invented to stoke fear and lay the ground-work for overturning the election if it didn't go their way.

2024-11-27 14:39:55 GMT

Americans DRAMATICALLY overestimate the size of the immigrant and Hispanic/Latino populations, and this almost certainly feeds into (and is fueled by) fearmongering. All of this prevents us from having an informed and civil conversation about immigration policy.
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/555/432/407/361/480/original/6976411e93fc5856.png

2024-11-27 13:29:39 GMT

“Instead of closing abusive detention facilities once and for all, the Biden administration is simply paving the way for the incoming Trump administration to conduct mass detention and deportation of immigrant communities nationwide." – ACLU
https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/aclu-foia-litigation-reveals-new-information-regarding-ices-plans-to-expand-immigration-detention-in-new-jersey

2024-11-25 12:19:29 GMT

I GO DOWN TO THE SHORE
I go down to the shore in the morning
and depending on the hour the waves
are rolling in or moving out,
and I say, oh, I am miserable,
what shall—
what should I do? And the sea says
in its lovely voice:
Excuse me, I have work to do.
—Mary Oliver

2024-11-23 18:52:50 GMT

It’s absolutely mind-boggling how many people in this country think that immigrants can just fill out paperwork and either “come legally” or “become a citizen.” It’s both so wrong and also such a product of intentional misinformation.

2024-11-22 13:33:51 GMT

ICE Might Be Reading Your Encrypted Text Messages
Paragon is an Israeli firm whose spyware product “Graphite” focuses on breaching encrypted messaging applications such as Telegram and Signal. ICE, the immigration enforcement agency, has already acquired the technology.
https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-technology-the-trump-administration-could-use-to-hack-your-phone

2024-11-20 16:05:29 GMT

I’ve been asked a few times recently, so let me say this simply: Republicans move immigration policy to the right, then Democrats normalize/systemitize those changes, laying the groundwork for Republicans to move the needle further to the right. 🔄 There is no leftward movement.