Authors
Liv Veazey

Liv covers immigration for New York Focus. She previously reported for Hell Gate, where she wrote about ICE arrests in immigration court, city culture, and the 2025 mayoral election. Before becoming a journalist, she practiced and taught oral history in New York City. Her work has also appeared in n+1 and Mouse Magazine.

A screenshot from a police body camera shows a person in a car, his face obscured by the officer's hands holding a phone. The caption shows the officer saying "Is there a border patrol that speaks Spanish?"
Videos Show Upstate Cops Calling Border Patrol on Drivers

Oswego County sheriff’s deputies held drivers for up to 45 minutes as they waited for immigration agents, potentially breaking the law.

May 7, 2026
Immigration Talks Hit Impasse After Hochul’s Latest Proposal

Hochul’s counter would limit informal collusion with ICE only in civil matters.

April 29, 2026
He Won Asylum Without a Lawyer. Now He Helps West African New Yorkers Fight Deportation.

Cheikh Fall has spent nearly two decades helping New York immigrants from his home region seek asylum in the United States.

April 28, 2026
New Yorkers Arrested by ICE Are Choosing Departure Over Indefinite Detention

Twenty-two percent of people arrested by ICE in New York state during Trump’s second term have left the country voluntarily — up from less than 1 percent under Biden.

April 21, 2026
ICE Is Trying to Send Hundreds of New York’s African Asylum Seekers to a Country They’re Not From

Over the last three months, ICE attorneys in New York state have petitioned to send half of the African asylum seekers who had immigration hearings to Uganda.

March 18, 2026
State Legislature Proposes Major Boost to Immigrant Legal Services

The governor and legislature are negotiating over immigration legislation outside of the budget process.

March 11, 2026
‘I Was Just Desperate to Find a Lawyer’: Three Journeys Through New York’s Asylum Maze

It’s almost impossible to win an asylum case without an attorney. Finding one is a tall order.

February 26, 2026
Hochul Proposed Banning ICE Collaboration Contracts. Here’s What You Need to Know.

The bill would dissolve contracts that allow federal immigration authorities to use county jails, but would leave more informal collaboration with local law enforcement untouched.

January 31, 2026
Hochul Stays Mum on Sanctuary Bill: State of the State 2026

Immigrant rights advocates and some lawmakers welcomed her proposals, but said that the measures don’t go far enough.

January 14, 2026
Shadows over an asylum application form
Asylum Seekers in Panic Over Trump’s Unclear $100 Fee

The Trump administration’s lack of clarity about when and how to pay new fees sparked chaos and misinformation among immigrants with pending asylum applications.

September 29, 2025