Child Care Providers Sound the Alarm on Immigration Policies’ Harm to Families with Young Children
July 16, 2025
Children need love, safety, and a sense of belonging to thrive; however, for far too many children in immigrant families across the country, the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement campaign has deprived them of this basic foundation for well-being. The Trump administration’s heightened mass deportation efforts, the erosion of due process protections, and ICE presence in once-protected locations like schools and hospitals have created an environment that is traumatizing children and driving families into isolation.
Our newest brief draws from our conversations with five child care providers who work closely with immigrant families. Due to the deep level of intimacy and trust that families often develop with their child care providers, these conversations offered valuable, real-time insight into the overwhelming stress and heartbreaking decisions that immigrant families are having to make right now for the safety of their family. The providers we spoke with work in different regions of the country in programs serving anywhere from 5 to over 100 children, but all delivered a clear and consistent message: the Trump administration’s mass deportation policies are not only harming parents in immigrant families, but are also inflicting lasting trauma on children, regardless of their citizenship status.
Immigrant Families of All Statuses are Afraid
Our research found that many immigrant families began expressing fear to their child care providers immediately after the 2024 presidential election—and that anxiety surged after President Trump signed a series of executive orders in early 2025 to lay the groundwork for mass detention and deportation. Since then, many of these fears have been realized, and the erosion of due process and existing legal protections for immigrants have further amplified deportation fears for families regardless of their immigration status.
The impact of this fear on children’s wellbeing is profound. Parents are disenrolling their children from care, not bringing them to school, avoiding public places like parks, and not applying for child care subsidies for which they are eligible. One provider shared that dozens of families have left her center since the start of the year, forcing her to close a classroom. Another described how parents tried to leave their children’s passports in cubbies at school in case of an ICE raid—hoping it will be enough to prevent their U.S.-born children from being wrongfully detained.
Children Are Absorbing the Stress
Although young children may not understand the nuances of immigration policy, they are deeply affected by the anxiety they see in their parents’ eyes and the disruptions to their daily lives. Providers reported that children are becoming more fearful, more clingy, and less able to sleep or self-regulate. One teacher described a “Zen Den” in her center where children go to calm down—and noted that visits to this quiet space have increased.
Child care providers also shared their concerns about the lasting developmental harm that isolation will cause children in immigrant families. With fewer opportunities to interact with peers or engage in outdoor play, children are missing out on key childhood experiences that shape their development and sense of self. As one provider put it, “When your world shrinks, the opportunity you have to build a coherent sense of who you are is impacted.”
Providers Are Stepping In—But They Can’t Do It Alone
Providers are working hard to create safe, nurturing spaces for children and parents in immigrant families, but they are doing so in an environment where safety feels increasingly uncertain. They’re sharing immigration resources, connecting families to legal aid, organizing mental health services for children under three, and offering power-of-attorney clinics so parents can make contingency plans in case of detention.
Providers are doing everything they can to support families. However, these efforts—while critical—are no substitute for the protections only policy can provide. Child care providers cannot entirely shield children from the long-term impact of stress, isolation, and disrupted routines as a result of changes in immigration policy. Nor do they have the resources to bridge the vast access gap as the administration seeks to further limit immigrant families’ access to vital federal programs supporting early education, health care, and nutrition access.
Policymakers Must Act Now
We are already seeing the consequences of policy decisions that destabilize immigrant families. What’s needed now is action to reverse course and uphold the wellbeing of all children—regardless of immigration status. Policymakers must:
- Restore protections for sensitive locations—ensuring that child care centers, schools, hospitals, and places of worship remain off-limits for immigration enforcement.
- End family separation in all its forms—by halting deportations of parents and preserving the integrity of mixed-status families.
- Create a real pathway to legal status and citizenship—so that long-term residents, workers, and parents are no longer forced to live in the shadows.
- Guarantee access to public services—including child care, housing, and mental health support—without fear of repercussions based on immigration status.
- Invest in child care and community-based providers—who are bearing the emotional and financial burden of this policy crisis and need resources to continue supporting families.
We know what children need to thrive, and children in immigrant families are no different. With one in four children living in immigrant families, the future of our country is inseparable from the success and safety of all its children. To ensure our country thrives, we must come together to protect families and safeguard our future.
All that immigrant families are asking for is a chance to contribute, to raise their children in peace, and to belong. As Diana*, a child care provider we spoke to who is herself an immigrant, put it: “…the government [should] … give a chance to all these people who do nothing but good, who do good work. Who go out every morning to earn their daily bread. … I feel like I’m part of these children’s lives, I’m doing my small bit to make a difference in their lives. I’m doing something good, and I’m doing a good job. And I feel that we’re not doing anything wrong.”
*Names and identifying information have been changed to protect individuals’ privacy.
