MIAMI – A Miami-based professor is warning that heightened deportation efforts under Donald Trump’s potential administration policies could impact over a million immigrants in Florida alone, with local communities and families facing serious consequences.
Juan Carlos Gomez, a professor at Florida International University’s School of Law and an immigration attorney, said increased enforcement would likely start with programs such as 287(g), which allows ICE to delegate immigration duties to local law enforcement agencies.
“Should they seek to enforce (it), they can,” Gomez said. “The question is what groups will they target.”
Gomez pointed to the previous administration’s controversial policies, including attempts to revoke DACA and the “Muslim ban,” as setting precedents for sweeping actions.
“You have case law, you have the support of the courts, and you have policies,” he noted, suggesting that such policies could have a broad impact on immigrants in Florida.
Recent findings by the American Immigration Council estimate that more than one million immigrants could be affected in Florida, including Cubans without parole documents and those with Temporary Protected Status from Venezuela, Honduras, Nicaragua, and El Salvador.
“We need to think about our labor markets, our economy, and families,” Gomez said, emphasizing the broader consequences for children and communities.
While Gomez expressed hope for moderation in future policies, he added, “I’m not very optimistic right now.”
The Trump campaign did not respond to Local 10′s request for comment.