Donegal man to feature on TG4 programme “Trump agus na Gaeil”

A Donegal man features in TG4’s current affairs programme “Trump agus na Gaeil”. 

The programme, which airs tonight, details undocumented Irish citizens living in the United States being advised not to travel home for Christmas. Éamonn Mac Giolla Bhríde, who is an auctioneer from Gweedore, will feature in the documentary. 

“Trump agus na Gaeil” details investigative journalist Kevin Magee travelling to the US to investigate the plight of the undocumented Irish caught up in President Trump’s concerted campaign to deport illegal immigrants carried out by officers from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 

Up-to-date figures from ICE on the number of deportations of Irish citizens are difficult to obtain. Still, figures attributed to ICE show that this year, between January and Sept, 99 Irish people were deported from the United States. 

According to ICE, this compares to 60 deportations for the previous year, 2024. This is an increase of 65 per cent in a single year. Their figures show that in 2023, 37 Irish people were deported, 17 in 2022 and ten in 2021. 

The programme also reveals that new figures from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Dublin show that there has been a significant increase this year in the number of Irish citizens who have requested assistance in relation to deportation from the United States. 

Speaking on the programme, prominent Irish American lawyer and founding member of the Irish American Democrats, Brian O’Dwyer, says any undocumented Irish should remain in the US and not contemplate travelling home over the festive period. 

“In the current climate, if they are undocumented, they can’t go home because they are not going to get back in. At the moment, they just have to stay low and hope this boils over. I can’t give them much better advice than that. 

“It’s that dark, and it’s cruel. What they are doing is they are picking up people and then detaining them unnecessarily.” 

It is not known how many undocumented Irish there are in the United States but estimates vary anywhere between ten and fifty thousand. Most are what are termed “overstayers” - people who have remained in the country after their permission to be there legally has expired. 

According to the most recent figures from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Dublin, the number of citizens who have requested consular assistance in relation to deportation from the USA so far this year is 63. 

This is a significant increase from last year, before Donald Trump began his second term in the White House. The total number of people asking for Departmental assistance in 2024 was 15, in 2023 it was 18, eleven people sought help in 2022 and five in 2021. 

The 63 people who sought help include those who have already been deported and those who are going through the deportation process, which often includes being held in detention at immigration holding centres across the USA. According to the Department, the actual number of Irish citizens being deported or held by ICE could be higher than 63. 

“It is important to note that this figure only relates to cases where a citizen or their family has requested consular assistance and does not necessarily reflect all deportations to Ireland or where a citizen is currently being detained by ICE,” a spokesperson for the department said. 

County Limerick native Monsignor James Kelly, 88, has been helping undocumented immigrants get permission to remain in the US since he moved to Brooklyn more than 60 years ago. Under President Trump’s current crackdown on illegal immigration, he says Irish people without the necessary documents to remain in the US are just as likely as any other illegal immigrant to be deported. 

“The Irish don’t have any privileged status anymore. They were treated very well in the past, but now they’re not treated any differently. They are just one of another group now. There are many Irish here that at the moment who are not in good standing who don’t have status.” 

Monsignor Kelly also advised any undocumented Irish living in the States not to travel over Christmas for fear of being apprehended, deported on denied re-entry. 

“You have to be very careful that you don’t make trips to Ireland. They (the undocumented) can’t afford to go home for Christmas and not be able to come back. It is a real problem because they have jobs here, and families here so they might not be able to come back here that easily.

“My advice would be not to do anything. Just stay quiet. Keep quiet for the moment. Marry an American if you can. Adjust yourself that way. Get a green card. You need to get status, and the only way you can get status is by getting a green card. That will give you the first steps towards citizenship.” 

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Accurate up-to-date figures from ICE on the total number of deportations from the US are difficult to obtain, but at the end of October, the Department of Homeland Security in the US announced what it called “ record-breaking statistics”. It said more than 527,000 “illegal aliens were removed under the leadership of President Donald Trump” with 600,000 deportations expected by the end of the year. 

While the second Trump administration is promising a record number of deportations of illegal immigrants from the US, new figures from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade show that the number of applicants from the US for Irish passports this year has increased significantly. 

There were 38,376 applications made by people based in the United States for Irish passports so far this year. That compared to 31,825 last year, an increase of 21 per cent. 

Trump agus na Gaeil will air on TG4 tonight at 9:30pm.