The D.C. Delivery Workers Hiding From ICE

One month into President Trump’s federal takeover of Washington, D.C., some of the city’s most visible workers have gone into hiding. Hector is one more than a dozen people we spoke to who work for apps like Uber Eats, DoorDash and Grubhub. He and others say they have drastically cut back their hours or stopped working entirely. They also told us that federal agents in D.C. are detaining immigrants both with and without work permits. Drivers also told us they’re afraid of being targeted, so we agreed not to show their faces and are using only first names. During the first three weeks of President Trump’s federal takeover in D.C., immigration agents detained more than 400 people. Although it’s not known how many delivery workers were arrested, fear has spread. Videos of masked agents pulling drivers from mopeds have flooded immigrant group chats, alongside ads for bikes being sold by workers who are quitting altogether. D.C. police and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not respond to our questions about whether certain groups in the city are being targeted. But in a press release, immigration officials said the arrests are part of an effort to tackle violent crime and make the city safe. On Aug. 21, this driver, Javier, was arrested while picking up a coffee order in D.C.’s Navy Yard neighborhood. Soon after he was detained, we spoke to Javier’s family — his brother-in-law, Leo, and his wife, Maria — at the apartment they share. Maria told us her husband had applied for asylum in the U.S. and had a work permit, as well as a Social Security card. She arrived just in time to see federal agents loading her husband into an unmarked vehicle. His moped was left to the side. Hours later, Maria tried to track down Javier through a legal aid hotline that has received more than 2,500 calls since the takeover began. But the operator wasn’t able to locate Javier. Maria also worked as a food delivery driver, but stopped after her husband’s arrest. Her brother-in-law, Leo, didn’t work for two days, but says he was forced to go back in order to help the family pay bills. Leo has also applied for asylum, but does not have a work permit. As Leo delivers an order, he notices a police cruiser parked near the entrance. On a typical day, Leo would make around $200. Today, he calls it quits after just two orders.