When President Donald Trump took office, he promised to crack down on immigration. He’s done that. 

Since January of 2025, at least 2,400 immigrants were arrested in Michigan alone. But President Trump and immigration officials are not following an orderly process. Officials are often skirting the law, or violating it. 

This was visible months ago in Minneapolis, when masked ICE agents shot and killed Renee Good and Alex Pretti and thousands took to the streets. Here in Michigan, the work of ICE is harder to spot. But due to action in the courts, we’ve been learning more. 

Federal judges recently ruled that hundreds of people in Michigan were unconstitutionally detained as they never had a chance of being released on bond. 

For its part, the administration says it’s detaining the “worst of the worst.” But in many cases, non-citizens without a criminal record have been detained. 

So, what do ICE arrests and detentions look like in metro Detroit? What are the stories of those who’ve been detained? How are local police involved in the work? And, who’s fighting back? 

Violet Ikonomova is an investigative reporter for the Detroit Free Press. She spoke with The Metro‘s Robyn Vincent.

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Automakers and auto suppliers are a huge part of metro Detroit’s economy. And they will likely have to change as the war unfolds. 

As America’s strikes against Iran continue, and the Strait of Hormuz remains in question, gas prices are rising, and more people are thinking about purchasing an electric vehicle. 

But despite interest, how much will EV sales actually increase for companies like Ford, GM and Stellantis — especially as car sales in general have plummeted over the past few decades?

John McElroy is an automotive analyst with Autoline. He spoke with The Metro‘s Robyn Vincent.

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The economy has undergone many drastic changes over the years. If you’re a millennial, change and chaos have been commonplace.

The Great Recession hit in the late aughts, reducing wealth. About ten years later, the pandemic occurred, causing many to stay at home and others to risk their health at work. Inflation deepened during President Joe Biden’s time in office. President Trump enacted tariffs. And now, the U.S. and Israel are at war with Iran. 

It’s hard to gauge all the consequences of this latest shock, but it’s a continuation of one thing: uncertainty. 

Rising gas prices and supply chain disruptions are now among the challenges small businesses must navigate. It might be why over half of small businesses owners in Michigan say they’re making operational changes to prepare for a recession, according to a recent survey. 

Which small businesses are hit hardest by the war in Iran and its disruptions? And, what could make them more resilient in the face of chaos?

Mark Lee is the president and CEO of The Lee Group, where he consults with small businesses across Southeast Michigan. He spoke with The Metro‘s Robyn Vincent.

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Tens of thousands of metro Detroiters took to the streets to take part in another “No Kings” protest, where they opposed President Donald Trump, recent policies on immigration, war with Iran and more. 

No Kings marches took place in cities across the country. WDET’s Russ McNamara was on the ground talking with folks in metro Detroit about what motivated them to speak up and get out. He spoke with The Metro‘s Cary Junior II about what he found.

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There’s a phone call that some people in metro Detroit are dreading right now, one where you find out the place you came from doesn’t exist anymore.

Abbas Alawieh got that call recently. His 91-year-old grandmother’s home in Lebanon was destroyed by the Israeli military. She is displaced, among hundreds of thousands of Lebanese civilians with nowhere to go. This is not the first time his family has been through this. 

When Alawieh was 15, visiting his grandmother in Lebanon, war broke out with Israel. He spent days in a basement while American-made bombs fell around him. It changed the course of his life and put him on a political path.

Alawieh grew up in Dearborn. He co-founded the Uncommitted movement that mobilized more than 100,000 Michigan voters in the 2024 Democratic primary. 

He is now a candidate for Michigan State Senate in District 2, which covers Dearborn, Dearborn Heights, and parts of Downriver. But he did not sit down with The Metro’s Robyn Vincent to talk about his campaign. The Metro invited him because he is experiencing what other families across metro Detroit are living right now — watching war destroy the people and places they love from an American living room.

Hear the full conversation using the media player above.

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About one month ago, Israel and America struck Iran. Now, Israel has enmeshed itself in more violence. 

In Iran, about 1500 people have been killed. Over 1,000 people have been killed in Lebanon. Settler violence against Palestinians has been ratcheted up in the West Bank. And, in Israel, as of one week ago, a dozen Israelis had been killed from Iranian air strikes. 

Israel says it is attacking the Iranian regime and Hezbollah in Lebanon to remove existential threats from the region.

In the midst of all this, a man drove a truck into Temple Israel in West Bloomfield. The attacker killed himself before he hurt anyone at the synagogue besides one security officer. He was grieving family that had been killed in Lebanon by Israel.

How are metro Detroit Jews processing this moment? And, what do conversations about domestic and foreign politics look like at this time?

Aaron Bergman is a rabbi at Adat Shalom, a synagogue in Farmington Hills. He spoke about all this with producer Sam Corey.

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It began in a living room in Southfield. Six people around a table in February, trying to figure out what to do about the federal lawyers who had just leased office space five minutes from their neighborhood.

Those lawyers work for the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor, arguing deportation cases on behalf of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They are the legal architecture behind ICE’s immigration raids.

The building is One Towne Square, an 18-story office tower on the Lodge Freeway. The owner, a company called Redico, says the lease prohibits law enforcement or detention on the premises. In a statement emailed to The Metro, a Redico representative said violating those terms would break the agreement. 

“From the beginning, we have been in close communication with our employees and tenants and have had ongoing discussions with city officials and community leaders,” the statement reads. “We will continue meeting with city and community leaders and remain committed to transparency.”

The neighbors say that’s not enough, and the number of them pushing back is growing. Six people in a living room became 150 at a recent rally. Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, State Senator Jeremy Moss, and faith leaders also showed up.

At the center of all this is Lauren Fink. She co-founded the Southfield Neighbors Action Committee in that living room in Southfield with her husband, Cameron. She joined Robyn Vincent on The Metro to talk about what it means to be a good neighbor when people around you are in trouble.

This story has been updated with Redico’s statement. -Ed

Hear the full conversation using the media player above.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.

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