‘They look for any excuse to get us’: Panic paralyzes Venezuelan migrant communities

The Trump administration says Tren de Aragua is a terrorist group – but it’s really a transnational criminal organization. Here’s why the label matters.

Venezuelan immigrants, whom the Trump White House says are members of the Tren de Aragua gang, arrive in El Salvador on March 31, 2025. El Salvador Press Presidency Office/Anadolu via Getty ImagesThe U.S. State Department declared on Feb. 20, 2025, that the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, as well as some Mexican drug cartels, are now considered foreign terrorist organizations. Is the new label warranted? Tren de Aragua is at the center of a cont…

‘They look for any excuse to get us’: Panic paralyzes Venezuelan migrant communities

“What do I do? Go to the police and say, ‘Check my tattoos, I’m not a criminal’?” Nassi is in despair over reports of tattooed Venezuelan migrants being deported from the United States to a mega-prison in El Salvador because they are suspected of being members of Tren de Aragua, a criminal group that was started in Venezuela.Seguir leyendo

A Tattooed Venezuelan? Terrorist!

By Jessica Dos Santos – Mar 31, 2025 Venezuelanalysis columnist Jessica Dos Santos takes stock of the Trump administration’s crackdown against Venezuelan migrants. The Venezuelan government’s discourse surrounding migration has evolved a lot in the last few years. It almost resembles the different stages of grief. First, there was denial, especially given how some organizations published inflated figures and opposition figures tried to draw poli…

At least 27 of the 238 expelled Venezuelans never received court orders for deportation and had asylum cases and court hearings pending.