Analysis: How the White House Is Setting Migrants Up for Detention

A USCIS memo from February outlining the issuance of Notices to Appear in immigration court appears to be used as bait to target noncriminal migrants

Photo by Grant Durr on Unsplash

In February, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a memo providing new guidance for issuing Notices to Appear (NTA) in immigration court. The policy has resulted in proceedings against nearly 27,000 noncitizens, according to a recent USCIS press release. As we see Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrest migrants after judges drop their cases at the behest of the Department of Justice, it becomes clear how it's being done.

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The whole thing is a bigger setup than what we see on the surface. It appears that the cases being dropped without explanation are cases initiated by immigration authorities under the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) guidance, which USCIS operates under. This is playing a role in detaining noncitizens in courthouse hallways – migrants doing everything “the right way” are being taken and deported for no reason other than having brown skin.

“This update has helped USCIS enforce existing immigration laws by once again issuing NTAs to removable aliens in the United States,” said USCIS Spokesman Matthew Tragesser. “Under the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Noem, we have returned to commonsense NTA policies and, since February 2025, have issued tens of thousands of NTAs to restore integrity and ensure the security of our nation’s immigration system.”

This could also explain why the vast majority of those being detained are Latino. It’s pretty easy to pick out all the Latino names from the lists of migrants, especially in the artificial intelligence (AI) era. For an administration centered on putting white people first and maintaining their perceived hierarchy, trying to find Black and brown noncitizens to deport is far too easy using the existing databases that tech fascists like Elon Musk just had their fat fingers in.

While DHS and its child agencies all claim to be returning to “robust screening and vetting” and using it as justification for issuing NTAs, this is based on a widely debunked conspiracy theory during former President Joe Biden that argued migrants weren’t being vetted or medically screened. It was a false narrative that legacy media perpetuated by refusing to debunk it. CBS News, for example, allowed people to make the claim on the air without challenging it.

“USCIS returned to robust screening and vetting of immigration petitions and applications while prioritizing deterrence efforts,” reads the USCIS press release. “These screening and vetting efforts have led to approximately 1,840 NTAs a week and a 2,811% increase in fraud-related NTAs per month from the Biden-Harris administration era.”

Additionally, for the roughly 850,000 migrants who lost their Temporary Protected Status (TPS), NTAs will likely be issued for them as well. This seems to be how DHS intends to remove all of the Afghans, Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, Venezuelans, or any other group under TPS. In other words, we can expect to see thousands more videos of migrants who tried to do everything right being arrested and deported.

“If the Secretary of Homeland Security terminates a nation’s TPS designation, former TPS beneficiaries of that nation who have no other authorization to remain in the United States may be subject to NTA issuance,” read the USCIS press release. “These aliens should depart the United States and are encouraged to use the U.S. Customs and Border Protection CBP Home app to report their departure.”

Meanwhile, within hours of the USCIS press release, DHS issued a separate notice announcing the termination of the Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans (CHNV) Parole Program. In the press release, DHS announced that “both their parole is terminated, and their parole-based employment authorization is revoked – effective immediately.”

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The press release invokes many debunked anti-immigrant talking points that have been around since before the U.S. Revolution and were once used against Chinese immigrants in the post-slavery era.

“The Biden Administration lied to America. They allowed more than half a million poorly vetted aliens from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela and their immediate family members to enter the United States through these disastrous parole programs; granted them opportunities to compete for American jobs and undercut American workers; forced career civil servants to promote the programs even when fraud was identified; and then blamed Republicans in Congress for the chaos that ensued and the crime that followed,” said Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. “Ending the CHNV parole programs, as well as the paroles of those who exploited it, will be a necessary return to common-sense policies, a return to public safety, and a return to America First.”

The vilification of immigrants who’ve done everything they’re supposed to is happening through various tactics. While most are being criminalized as violent offenders for the actions of a few, others are being framed as a drain on the system. Everything from locally funded social services to “exploiting” the CNHV parole program, migrants from nations in the Southern Hemisphere are being demonized in every way they can think of, including referring to them as “poorly vetted,” which has become another dog whistle to suggest criminality.

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Arturo is an independent journalist whose work can be found at Unicorn Riot, The Antagonist Magazine, Latino Rebels, and more. Arturo is also on TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Mastodon, and Threads. To support his work, become a paid subscriber or donate via Venmo, PayPal, or Cash App.