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Four years on from Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, hundreds of thousands of Russians and Ukrainians have found refuge in America. But now, under President Trump's immigration crackdown, many are being forcibly returned. NPR's Jasmine Garsd reports on one Minnesota family's dilemma.
JASMINE GARSD, BYLINE: On a cold December morning in the city of Eagan, Minnesota, a family went through their usual hustle. Mom prepared breakfast, dressed the kids and jumped in the shower while Dad stepped outside to warm up the car. But by the time the woman, named Ekaterina, got out of the shower, her world had changed completely. She had a missed call and a text message from her husband, Bogdan.
EKATERINA: (Speaking Russian) ICE officers (speaking Russian).
GARSD: It read, "Katyusha, I was just arrested by ICE. They're taking me to detention. I'll call you later. Please pick up."
EKATERINA: (Speaking Russian).
GARSD: "I left the car key on the back tire. I love you." The family has asked that NPR withhold their last name because they're Russian citizens opposed to the invasion of Ukraine, and Bogdan fled the Russian draft. They are terrified about what happens if they get deported and sent back to Russia.
BOGDAN: Because I don't want to die.
GARSD: This is Bogdan over the phone from detention in Louisiana. He's been there for more than two months.
BOGDAN: I'm not crazy to go and die there and to, you know, kill my own relatives or something. My father is from Ukraine. My mother is from Russia. They both are my relatives, both sides, so I'm not killing them.
GARSD: Back in Russia, Ekaterina worked with children. Bogdan was a language tutor. In 2022, their second daughter was born with a congenital condition, spina bifida. She needs a walker to move around. So the war wasn't just an ethical quandary. It was a financial burden. Their daughter's disability requires time and money for care, and the Russian government has imposed a strict military draft for men.
They migrated to the U.S. following asylum protocols to a T. They requested entry to the U.S. through Tijuana, Mexico, a legal port of entry, and they were granted parole - permission to temporarily live and work in the United States. They both found work at a Minnesota nursing home and formally applied for asylum. That application is still pending. And so four years later, when the Trump administration started its immigration crackdown campaign, Bogdan told his wife, don't worry about it.
EKATERINA: We're working officially, so we're not criminal - no any criminal. Like, not in our country, not here. So why we need to worry?
GARSD: But over the last year, the Trump administration has moved to reduce asylum, refugee and humanitarian parole programs. And that's left many, including Ekaterina and Bogdan, in limbo. According to the Department of Homeland Security, in the last two fiscal years, more than 600 Ukrainians and Russians were deported. DHS didn't respond to questions about Bogdan's case. His lawyer says Bogdan has no criminal record. And he says if he gets sent back to Russia, he'll likely face jail time or be sent to a war that's already inflicted well over a million casualties.
I ask Ekaterina how she's handling the stress, but before she can answer, the phone rings. It's Bogdan calling from detention in Louisiana.
EKATERINA: (Speaking Russian).
BOGDAN: (Speaking Russian).
UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: (Speaking Russian).
GARSD: He talks to his youngest, who is 4 years old and thinks he's on a long work trip. The eldest, age 8, knows what's happening and is upset. Bogdan tells NPR he is surrounded by so many people who've been living in the U.S. for decades.
BOGDAN: Many of them, they break mentally, pretty fast. Everybody tells them that all of the people who - all the people who stay here are going to be deported - everyone, no exception.
GARSD: But he says he can't afford to go back to a war with no clear end in sight. Jasmine Garsd, NPR News, Minneapolis.
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