Focal Point: Lives In The Balance

Immigration in a
Divided America

A nationwide reporting initiative on courts, communities and chaos.

Immigration in a Divided America

Reporting Across the U.S.

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University Hub
Reporting Location

Cases & Lives Hang in the Balance

Nearly 100 journalists documented immigration courts and communities across the country, capturing America’s overstrained immigration system.

Behind the Immigration Docket Read More Stories →
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University Partners
13+
Reporting Locations
7
States Covered
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Hearings observed, Jan. 28 – Feb. 28, 2026
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Appeared without a lawyer
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Nationalities of respondents

Closed door justice

Story by

Since President Donald Trump returned to office, advocacy groups, court observers and journalists have increasingly been barred from immigration court hearings.

Bonds without bounds

Story by

A middle-aged man detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, with no criminal record, a 15-year history with his local church, and a U.S. citizen wife and children, sat in an Eloy, Arizona, immigration court.

‘It’s modern slavery’

Story by

New York’s dairy industry depends on immigrant labor, who find themselves under siege and in an increasingly difficult situation as a result of the federal immigration crackdown. Advocates say passage of the New York for All Act would help.

University Hubs
New York Syracuse University S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications View Coverage → Illinois Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism View Coverage → California University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism View Coverage → Arizona Arizona State University Walter Cronkite School of Journalism View Coverage → Florida University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications View Coverage → Nebraska University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Journalism and Mass Communications View Coverage →