For nearly 40 years, Maoro has lived and worked in Colorado, building a life in the United States. But for the past month, the undocumented construction worker has barely left his home in Aurora, terrified of being detained and deported by immigration officials.
“It’s worse than a prison,” Maoro, 59, told AFP. Unable to pay rent and now dependent on his daughter, a U.S. citizen, he fears the Republican administration’s promise of mass deportations will soon become his reality.
Aurora, a diverse suburb of Denver with a population representing over 100 nationalities, has become a focal point of heightened immigration enforcement. Recently, armed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers conducted aggressive raids, using battering rams and armored vehicles. These operations resulted in multiple arrests, exacerbating fear among the immigrant community.
The anxiety among migrants stems partly from President Donald Trump’s rhetoric. Last year, a viral video showed armed Latin American men entering an apartment in Aurora. Trump pointed to the footage as proof that Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua had “taken control” of the city. However, Aurora’s Republican mayor refuted these claims, citing a declining crime rate and describing the incident as isolated.
Despite this, Trump has continued to portray Aurora as a city under siege by migrant criminals, vowing to deport millions if re-elected. Many immigrants feel scapegoated. “Everything that’s going wrong in the United States now is because of Tren de Aragua,” Venezuelan asylum seeker Alexander Jimenez said sarcastically. He and his family, including young grandchildren, have been in hiding since the raids.
Advocacy groups, like the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition, are helping migrants understand their legal rights. Susana, a 47-year-old Mexican immigrant, was deported in 2017 under Trump’s first term and spent five years separated from her children. “When you discover that you have rights, it’s powerful,” she said, now more aware of legal protections.
As ICE operations continue, fear grows in Aurora’s immigrant community. Many, like Maoro and Susana, cling to hope that understanding their rights will provide some protection in an increasingly hostile environment.
