A report from University of South Florida compiled the findings from 53 in-depth interviews conducted between January and July 2025 of immigrants and their U.S. citizen children living in Florida.
It sheds light on how their lives have changed under President Donald Trump's second term. The report shows how federal policies, combined with Florida's state policies, have pushed the immigrant community into social isolation.
USF sociology professor Elizabeth Aranda oversaw the research project. She said the report does not recommend specific policy decisions, but could serve as a resource for lawmakers and the public.
The group interviewed include those without legal status, asylum seekers, people in the country with temporary protected status (TPS), DACA recipients, legal permanent residents known as Green Card holders and U.S. citizen children of immigrants.
"The impact of these enforcement policies really seeped into virtually every area of social life," said Aranda.
Avoiding law enforcement
In their testimonies, immigrants reported not going to work, church, the doctor or grocery stores in order to avoid contact with law enforcement. They also expressed hesitance to contact local police if they were victims of crime or witnessed a crime.
The state of Florida holds the most 287(g) agreements with federal immigration agencies, the report stated. Those agreements allow local law enforcement and state agencies to aid federal immigration efforts.
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"Across the board, everyone in the sample talked about insomnia, issues with their appetite — either losing their appetite or eating more — anxiety, depression, fatigue, hair loss, just a range of psychosomatic symptoms," Aranda said.
Parents said their U.S.-born children experienced similar ailments and were hyper-vigilant.
Aranda described one interviewee who said her daughter asked if her mom would still be home when she returned from school.
As work becomes less stable and more dangerous, the ripple effects extend directly into the home. Families already struggling to maintain employment now face shrinking options for where and how to live.
"She was always gleefully surprised that her mother was there. It gives you a little window into how children are thinking," said Aranda.
Interviewees described employment becoming more precarious. Immigrants have moved from construction, agriculture and other industries, into more informal work, such as delivery driving or small-scale reselling, that are lower-paying and potentially exploitative.
Migrant farmworkers choose to stay
The fear of being stopped by law enforcement, the report said, did not only end travel to local job sites. Migrant farmworkers, who travel out of state for seasonal farm work, have also opted to stay in the state.
Immigrants also spoke of exploitation and scams.
Amanda, a 39-year-old asylum seeker from Venezuela who has lived in the US for 11 years, described how members of her extended family lost thousands of dollars to a sham recruitment operation.
Amanda describes how her uncles paid a $400 deposit, but ultimately were not hired to work.
"As work becomes less stable and more dangerous, the ripple effects extend directly into the home. Families already struggling to maintain employment now face shrinking options for where and how to live," the report said.
Some reported having to sell their homes, while others downsized and moved in with family members to consolidate expenses.
Even with increased enforcement, however, the report said that a majority spoke about staying.
"People felt like moving to another state wasn't necessarily going to solve things," Aranda said, "so the question was, do they leave the country or not? And many of them chose to stay because the original reasons they left and the original reasons they built their lives here [in the U.S.]."
Rosa, a 42-year-old undocumented mother from Mexico, said she wants to stay in the U.S. for her children.
"Sometimes I would like to [leave]. But because of my children, no, since they’re studying here, I think about it more for them. When I get stressed … yes, I would like to leave, but I try to keep going for them," said Rosa.
For many immigrant parents, keeping the family together becomes an act of endurance, the report states, they remain in a hostile environment out of obligation to their children’s future.
Read the full report:
