There is a “legitimate fear” among Irish people living illegally in the United States that they could be targeted next by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, a Chicago priest has said.
Some within the Irish community in the city fear it is only a matter of time before ICE raids are carried out at Irish cultural events, said Fr Jerry Boland of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Glenview, Chicago.
More Irish citizens have sought consular assistance in relation to deportation from the United States so far this year than in the previous three years combined, the Department of Foreign Affairs has said.
A total of 45 Irish citizens or their families have requested support from the Government since the start of 2025.
That includes both those who have already been deported and those who are still going through the deportation process, which may include being detained by ICE.
There were 44 requests for consular assistance in 2022, 2023 and 2024 combined.
US President Donald Trump changed immigration policies within days of being elected
The figures do not reflect all Irish citizens who went through the deportation process, only those who contacted the department.
Changing US immigration policies was a central part of US President Donald Trump’s election campaign.
“It’s only a matter of time before the net gets wider”
More than 20 executive orders relating to immigration were signed by Mr Trump in the first week of his second term.
The Hispanic and African communities have been the initial targets of immigration officers, Fr Boland said, but some Irish people feel “we’re next”.
“It’s only a matter of time before the net gets wider. We have an Irish heritage centre not too far from my parish and then there is a large Irish gathering spot called Gaelic Park in the south suburbs,” he said.
“You take the championships, people are afraid to go to that for fear that ICE agents might show up,” he added.
Irish people living illegally will not be specifically targeted, said John Foley, an immigration lawyer based in Boston, but with Mr Trump putting $180 billion towards the Department of Homeland Security, they will be “caught up in it”.
“He’s going to be creating an army of at least 10,000 agents but with that amount of money, many, many more. He’s going to use it to force immigration,” he said.
He added: “So we’re going to see a lot more people picked up off the street and removed from the United States.
“And with that, while he won’t specifically go after the Irish, they will in fact be caught up in it – they already have been, but we’ll see more people from Ireland returned from the United States,” said Mr Foley.