A recent raid by federal agents in north Durham has sparked anxiety and concern across the city, as city leaders and residents scramble to understand what happened and how to respond.
On Feb. 13, U.S. Customs and Border Protection arrested 11 people in Durham on charges of illegal immigration. Residents of Northgate Park, a north Durham neighborhood, recorded a video as three of the arrested men were marched away by agents dressed in tactical gear.
Members of Durham City Council assured residents on Monday that they do not condone the actions, even as immigrants around the city ask one another what this means for them.
‘These raids do not make people safer’
At Monday’s City Council meeting, Mayor Leonardo Williams emphasized that he and other council members learned of the incident only when residents posted videos of it on social media. The federal agents are under no obligation to inform the local government about planned raids, he said.
Mayor Williams also assured Durham residents that the Durham police played no role in the arrests.
“Durham is a place for all types of colors, creeds, races, ethnicities,” he said. “Once you walk into the borders of Durham, you are a Durhamite. We are an embracing community and we will continue to hold those values to be true.”
Other City Council members echoed that sentiment.
“We are losing people to raids by the federal government,” said council member Nate Baker. “These raids do not make people feel safer in our city. They only create a sense of fear and break up families.”
Council member Javiera Caballero spoke even more bluntly while praising the Durham residents who filmed the raid.
“We saw really, really brave neighbors filming and trying to stand up to the folks who came and quite frankly kidnapped members of our community,” said Caballero, after listing a series of nonprofit organizations geared towards helping immigrants and refugees in the Triangle area.
Federal officials issued the following statement about the raids:
“On February 13, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers conducted a targeted enforcement operation in Durham, resulting in the detention of several individuals identified as illegal aliens. All detainees are currently being held at a federal detention facility pending deportation hearings.”
‘Everything has turned upside down’
The three men who were recorded being arrested in Northgate Park are from India. In the city’s Indian community, some were unsettled by last week’s events. Others questioned whether the move to America is worth the risk and indignity of deportation.
“In India, we always knew that America is freedom,” said Manohar Arya, the head chef and manager of Tandoor, an eatery in Duke University’s Brodhead Center. Arya moved to the U.S. over 14 years ago, and has since become a permanent resident. Over time he has felt less and less like an immigrant — sometimes feeling more free in the U.S.than he did in India.
“But since this new government came into power, everything has turned upside down,” he said. “People are saying you should carry your papers all the time. You really feel like an immigrant.”
Neha Khan, the manager of The Pure Vegan Cafe, a restaurant on Erwin Road, has conflicting feelings.
“I do feel bad for people. To be handcuffed, and insulted like this… but at some level I must ask why they would risk so much. People pay hundreds of thousands of rupees, sell their land, rack up debt all to come to the U.S. And for what? Why leave your country behind? Is it that much better here than in India?”
Khan moved to the U.S. from India in 2022 to help her father, who was left alone in America after her mother and younger brother died unexpectedly of Covid. Her husband stayed behind in India.
“Suddenly, my dad was all alone. I had to stay back. But… I don’t want to be here forever.”
From working in the restaurant industry, Khan has heard multiple horror stories about undocumented immigration, including accounts of people who were jailed while crossing the border.
The recent raid did not entirely surprise Khan, but it did make her uneasy. She says aspiring immigrants are often pushed to do the “wrong thing,” sometimes without fully understanding the implication.
“But still… you shouldn’t do the wrong thing. It isn’t worth it.”
Like Khan, Arya is also uneasy. Lately, his feelings towards his chosen home have changed a little.
“I didn’t feel fear before. Now I do.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story stated U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement agents conducted the Feb. 13 arrests. The raids were actually conducted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents.
Above: Northgate Park residents captured the recent raid on video. The above image is a screenshot of a Facebook post by Hank Ducey.
Annapurna Bhattacharya
