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Until now this would have been a stupid question - this is my home. But we're in a strange timeline. My background is I was born in the UK, met first husband, married, got green card, that went tits up, divorced, met husband 2, found forever love, married, naturalized in 2021. Have my passport and everything.

It's my dad's birthday, and he lives in the UK. I want to go back and celebrate, but I'm nervous about reentry into the US. I naturalized during the Biden presidency, and I am a Democrat, I feel nervous that I have a target on my back. I have a home and pets here. Am I ridiculous for worrying or should I be cautious about leaving right now?

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[-] pelespirit@sh.itjust.works 104 points 3 weeks ago

Are you white?

Trump immigration raids snag U.S. citizens, including Native Americans, raising racial profiling fears

Those who are getting caught in Immigrations and Customs Enforcement raids are being targeted because of their race or skin color, according to witnesses.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/trump-immigration-raids-citizens-profiling-accusations-native-american-rcna189203

[-] pureness@lemmy.world 26 points 2 weeks ago

In all fairness they seem to be detaining plenty of white women too

[-] NotSteve_@lemmy.ca 16 points 2 weeks ago

Yeah there’s been multiple reports of white Canadian women being detained for weeks before being let go

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[-] Skullgrid@lemmy.world 6 points 2 weeks ago

immigration raids snag U.S. citizens, including Native Americans

Amazing. Where are they going to deport them to, the actual state their tribe were from before they were forced out of there and onto a barren reservation?

I know that they're probably deported to El Salvador because E.S. made bitcoin their national currency.

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[-] skisnow@lemmy.ca 100 points 3 weeks ago
[-] Taalnazi@lemmy.world 39 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

Add queer to the list and also if you're not a Nazi...

[-] johncandy1812@lemmy.ca 13 points 2 weeks ago

Add "liberal" or even "critical of the president" to that.

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[-] riodoro1@lemmy.world 16 points 3 weeks ago

Hey, how did you get access to the official ICE guidelines video!?

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[-] gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works 65 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

This risky.

Don’t risk it. Also, try to make some contingency plans in the event they do kick you out.

Tbh I’m born and raised here, and a straight white cisgender male, and I’m laying groundwork to quickly emigrate as a contingency plan.

Edit: apparently they’re now trying to figure out how to “de-naturalize” naturalized citizens, so that’s fun.

[-] Fredthefishlord 7 points 2 weeks ago

An actual risk assessment would look at % not single incidents

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[-] Varyk@sh.itjust.works 52 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

update: Blue sky users are apparently receiving threatening letters using the phrase their "parole is terminated" despite being us citizens; I can't confirm anything, but I'm looking into it now.

so far naturalized citizens are not being harassed or detained.

everyone i've heard about being turned away or deported so far has a green card, visa or is in the US illegally.

it's certainly a terrible situation and a slippery slope, but as far as I'm aware naturalized citizens are not facing that treatment yet.

[-] radix@lemmy.world 43 points 3 weeks ago

https://bsky.app/profile/nicolemicheroni.bsky.social/post/3lml5ctrmmc2u

Some personal news: the Department of Homeland Security has given me, an immigration lawyer born in Newton, Massachusetts, seven days to leave the U.S. Does anyone know if you can get Italian citizenship through great-grandparents?

[-] Varyk@sh.itjust.works 16 points 3 weeks ago

Italy and Ireland were like the last two countries that you could claim citizenship through great-grandparents, but I think Italy just ended it this year.

thanks for posting this, it's the first I've heard of maybe a US citizen being deported.

I'm looking into related posts to find corroboration and explanation for the term "parole" used here.

[-] kersploosh@sh.itjust.works 13 points 3 weeks ago

it's the first I've heard of maybe a US citizen being deported.

It's been happening for years. From the Washington Post:

The U.S. government does not release data on how often ICE wrongfully detains or deports U.S. citizens. But investigations by media outlets, research institutes and oversight agencies have revealed that ICE has arrested, detained, deported and issued detainers — requests to local jails to hold a person in custody — for thousands of citizens since the agency was created in 2003. One 2011 study estimated that roughly 1 to 1.5 percent of deportees are U.S. citizens.

https://archive.is/20250411190043/https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2025/04/05/us-citizens-deported-immigration/

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[-] couch1potato@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 3 weeks ago

From what I read itsly "ended" it, but it's not confirmed permanent yet, there will be a vote 60 days after march 28 to make it permanent. Their new restrictions are pretty extreme though. I would expect the vote to not pass, but some other version of this will get passed at some point.

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[-] jeffw@lemmy.world 7 points 3 weeks ago

Yeah as much as I like to shit on Trump, citizens are not really at much risk. Maaaaybe if you have a criminal record they could try some shit, but it would be a shift for the administration

[-] ParadeDuGrotesque@lemmy.sdf.org 7 points 3 weeks ago

Not really at much risk... YET.

Give it another 6 months or so.

[-] db2@lemmy.world 7 points 3 weeks ago
[-] Varyk@sh.itjust.works 8 points 3 weeks ago

not with regard to this specific situation, since white people have been deported or turned away due to their visa status, but under this administration anyone not white should feel way more targeted than they might be under other administrations.

[-] SolidShake@lemmy.world 39 points 3 weeks ago

Why would you want to come back? Place is a 2nd world shit hole.

[-] meco03211@lemmy.world 36 points 3 weeks ago

As a citizen you should be safe. Are you white? That makes it a little safer. Probably wouldn't hurt if you're attractive and female...

...

...

...

fuck I hate this timeline

[-] Lennnny@lemmy.world 25 points 3 weeks ago

I wanna be mad at these comments but they're so true. I'm white and female, so maybe I'll be fine. But it's so fucking sad that this is the case. I'm not just worried for me, but for all the people who made this place home. A lot of minorities in that group.

[-] Ledericas@lemm.ee 17 points 3 weeks ago

pretty risky as even white canadians are detained.

[-] idiomaddict@lemmy.world 18 points 3 weeks ago

That Canadian actress was white and attractive. The German held for several days without sleep was also white and attractive (also a man in a relationship with a man, but I don’t know how likely it is that CBP could have known that).

It’s probably protective, but it’s not sufficient

[-] dhork@lemmy.world 28 points 3 weeks ago

You are now an American citizen, so you should have the rights the rest of us have. You should be fine. They haven't gotten around to threatening to denaturalize people yet. When they do, they will concentrate first on people from countries they don't like, that used old policies they have since rescinded. And they will have to use more due process than they are using on these non-citizens.

The one thing I would be cautious of, though, is the state of your cell phone. They are very thin-skinned when it comes to criticism lately, and may decide to look through your phone's social media to decide if you are insufficiently loyal. They have broad powers to do that when you re-enter the country. As a US citizen they cannot deny you entry, but they can still make your life difficult on entry. And this group doesn't exactly pay attention to laws, do they?

At minimum, you might want to shut down your cell phone before getting off the plane. Explain it by saying it is a long flight, and you wanted to save your battery for arrival. If they confiscate a phone and try to dump all its data, they are more limited if the phone has just rebooted. They would basically need the PIN to do anything. If you want to go further, you can also log out of all of your social media accounts and remove their apps before the flight, so they even if they force you to divulge the PIN they won't find your social media history.

That may all be too paranoid, but we live in stupid times.

[-] Geetnerd@lemmy.world 26 points 3 weeks ago

Very. We have a Mad King ruling.

People are being deported to foreign gulags without Due Process: which means, without a trial.

Stay away.

[-] Professorozone@lemmy.world 23 points 2 weeks ago

Why would you come back?

[-] Crackhappy@lemmy.world 21 points 2 weeks ago

I think it really depends on how white you are. I'm 192cm tall, born in California, white as fuck with blue eyes, so I think that I'm pretty safe. However, I've cautioned my sister who was born on Java that she really has to take precautions. She's lived here and been naturalized since she was 1 years old, but even so, she's got brown skin, so she's a target for this RACIST AS FUCK government.

[-] A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.world 16 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Oh don't worry. They'll come for you soon.

They've already gotten away with kicking people out to a south american torture prison.

And they are actively and openly working on how to strip citizenship from people, so they can disappear anyone to the south american torture prison.

So you are not safe. You just have lots of brown and hispanic people infront of you to take the initial bullets.

Which is why we all need to be stopping this shit now, because we all know how the poem ends.

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[-] starlinguk@lemmy.world 10 points 2 weeks ago

They're arresting white people too.

[-] Treczoks@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago

But less often.

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[-] barneypiccolo@lemm.ee 7 points 2 weeks ago

I have a close friend who was born in Venzuela, and became a citizen in January. She feels much safer now, and thinks she's in the clear. I'm still worried about her, but i don't want to scare her with my own anxiety.

These MAGA Nazis want to get rid of Birthright Citizenship, which every nation in the world recognizes. If they won't even respect that, they aren't going to respect anything else - including Green Cards or Naturalization.

Bottom line - if you were born in another country, you are an enemy, and they want you out.

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[-] JohnDClay@sh.itjust.works 14 points 3 weeks ago

The scary thing is we have no clue. But they do seem to be racist in their targeting, so if you look white, I'd imagine you'd have a much lower risk.

[-] RecursiveParadox@lemmy.world 11 points 2 weeks ago

FWIW, I have multiple things I should go to in the USA coming up, and neither I nor my family are willing to risk it. My two (young adult) children and I have dual USA - EU country citizenship. My wife had a green card when she lived with me in NYC for over a decade, but turned it in when we moved back long ago. These facts (let alone what my posting history is like) are just too much for us. We won't risk it.

It's kind of like a plane crash: very unlikely to happen but you are equally unlikely to walk away unhurt.

[-] JcbAzPx@lemmy.world 9 points 2 weeks ago

At the moment they're only going after overt political dissidents and brown immigrants. As long as you haven't penned an oped criticizing Trump you should be fine. Though, I would advise buying a burner phone for the trip. Set up a new account and put a bunch of games on it so it doesn't look suspicious.

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[-] Evotech@lemmy.world 9 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

I’d imagine it was like 0% risky.

There’s A big difference between legal immigrants and actual us citizens.

But id probably rather live in the UK if that’s an option

[-] magnetosphere@fedia.io 8 points 3 weeks ago

You’re not ridiculous for worrying, but I think you’ll be okay. Since we’ve got a bigot running the show, it’ll help even more if you’re white (I hate saying that, but that’s the situation).

The future is another thing to consider. I assume that the situation for immigrants will only get worse, and turn into a complete shitshow when Mango Mussolini goes for his third term. This might be the least precarious time to leave the U.S. for several years. Make your trip count.

[-] frustrated_phagocytosis@fedia.io 8 points 3 weeks ago

You might be kept waiting for days at customs while officers insult you and try to get you to sign self deportation papers. Prepare so that you have what you need if you can never come back. Not joking, that's probably best case scenario, worst is gulag.

[-] spongebue@lemmy.world 12 points 3 weeks ago

Sorry, best case scenario is that you're held for days? Where are they keeping these planes full of passengers and crew that are coming into international airports everywhere on a daily basis?

The US is embarrassing. So are "not joking" comments like this.

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[-] ocean@lemmy.selfhostcat.com 6 points 3 weeks ago

I came back from China without issue.

[-] Treczoks@lemmy.world 6 points 2 weeks ago

You've still got a British passport? Consider staying out of trouble, I.e. the US.

[-] HootinNHollerin@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

My coworker who grew up in the soviet union and just moved here from a country trump hates had no problem recently

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this post was submitted on 12 Apr 2025
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