Recently, a major Alabama construction project suddenly went silent. Nearly every worker, despite apparent sign-off through the “E-verify” system, failed to show up on a $20 million job site. The reason? They were scared by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid on a work site 230 miles away. When it’s a matter of being deported and there are reports of immigrants deemed guilty until proven innocent, word travels quickly.
Granted, ICE’s stepped-up activity is a sensitive and complicated issue, but any conversation on the matter should acknowledge that its sweeping nature is creating quite a bit of economic turbulence.
At another, much smaller, Alabama home construction site, a contractor reported to me that he was the only English speaker on the project, and that the rest stayed inside at lunch for fear that, even though properly documented, they might be apprehended and forced to prove their legitimacy.
We all understand that President Donald Trump is keeping a campaign promise to round up and deport at least 1 million undocumented immigrants this year. It’s easier to forget that 685,000 were deported in 2024 under the Biden administration. Some have criminal records. Others, with clean reports, are released after crossing the border and then await judicial review of their status (a procedure, given the backlog, that may be years away).
Added to this may be as many as 1.6 million unauthorized immigrants who have voluntarily left the country since ICE efforts became more intense. The count is much disputed, but it’s not just the number that matters. The uncertainty, both for affected individuals and throughout the economy, is an inevitable result of the Trump administration’s high-profile approach.