What Is Your Emergency? | This American Life | Episode 880
From This American Life
exploit fear and confusion among communities by masquerading as service workers to carry out immigration raids. Through collected 911 calls, the narrative provides insight into the emotional toll and panic experienced by residents, highlighting the often chaotic and unsettling encounters between local citizens and federal immigration agents.
Key Takeaways
- When ICE agents go undercover as exterminators, it's not just pest control—it's a game of fear.
- These 911 calls reveal a stark truth: ICE's presence is a daily disruption, not just a headline.
- Imagine calling 911 on federal agents—welcome to a new reality where law enforcement is ambiguous.
- Tear gas in grocery store parking lots: is this the new normal or a striking absence of law?
- The confusion between 911 callers and dispatchers highlights a breakdown in communication about federal authority.
Mentioned in This Episode
- Ira Glass (person)
- ICE (company)
- Steven Little Miller (person)
- DHS (company)
- Maramar Martinez (person)
- Memo Torres (person)
- Minneapolis (location)
- Charlotte (location)
- Chicago (location)
- Christoal Malttos (person)
- Joshua Long (person)
- Operation Midway Blitz (event)
- North Carolina (location)
- Operation Trojan Horse (event)
- El Centro (location)
- National Day Labor Organizing Network (company)
- Charlotte Observer (company)
- Governor Tim Walz (person)