Washington, D.C.–Imagine starting your day the same way you always do. You get dressed. Grab your bag. Head out the door. But then you pause to ask yourself one question: “Do I have my passport?”
In Washington, D.C., some residents say that question no longer feels hypothetical.
There is no citywide requirement to carry a passport. But in neighborhoods across the district, a heightened federal presence marked by visible law enforcement, periodic National Guard deployments, and ongoing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity has changed how some people think about moving through public space. For immigrants and those perceived to be immigrants, the shift feels personal.
“If they ask me, who are you? What do you do? I can just say: ‘Just Google Marcelo Gomes Howard. You’ll see my face. You know, Howard.'”
“I’m legal here, but that doesn’t matter because that’s not what they ask,” says Marcelo René Gomes Perez, a lecturer at Howard University. “They don’t do research.”
Perez sees as a growing disconnect between legal status and lived reality. His concern reflects a broader anxiety echoed in community conversations, viral videos of ICE arrests and firsthand accounts shared across social media.
The result is a quiet but significant behavioral shift. Some residents now carry additional identification — not because the law requires it, but because they fear what could happen if they don’t.
Civil liberties advocates say preparation, not panic, is key. Melissa Wasser, senior policy counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union of D.C., points to the importance of knowing your rights and having access to reliable information.
“What to do if you’re arrested by ICE, and then any legal support and resources on being detained — we have that kind of resource,” Wasser says.
The ACLU’s local website offers multilingual guides on how to respond to encounters with immigration agents, law enforcement or military personnel. These resources have become increasingly relevant as enforcement visibility grows.
This dynamic isn’t unique to Washington. Across the country, communities are grappling with similar tensions as immigration enforcement expands and public safety measures become more visible. What makes D.C. distinct is its proximity to federal power, and how directly that power is felt on the ground by everyday people.
For some residents, the increased presence signals security. For others, it signals surveillance. In that uncertainty, something as simple as leaving the house begins to feel different.
Laila Murdoch is a reporter for HUNewsService.com.
