A group of Latino friends and their families had a tradition they repeated every summer: traveling in a caravan to a North Carolina beach, renting a large house, sharing expenses, enjoying the ocean and cooking together. But this year, they decided to stay home.
The story is repeating itself in other households. A young man who was planning to travel through the Pacific Northwest to go hiking also canceled his summer vacation and chose not to leave his city.
Although the reasons vary, both cases reflect a reality affecting many immigrant families in the United States: fear of traveling amid an increase in immigration enforcement operations and checks on roads and at airports.
But what are the consequences of no longer enjoying leisure time? Beyond having the financial means or the ability to take long vacations, resting, breaking from routine and spending time with family are needs that also influence mental health.
“We Try to Do Things at Home”
“We only visit people we know. We have a cookout or some kind of meal at home, organize games to have fun for a while and forget everything that is happening. We laugh, tell jokes and that’s how we pass the time,” an immigrant woman said.
Enlace Latino NC reached out to the community through one of its WhatsApp channels and a post on Facebook.
It asked what routines, trips, outings or activities people had stopped doing this summer and what they were doing instead.
The responses do not constitute a survey and do not make it possible to measure how many families are going through this situation. However, they show how some people have replaced trips and outings with activities at home or in places they consider safer.
“We try to organize things at home with the children,” one person responded. Another said they try to spend time with their family without going out. One mother said her children know that the park is no longer an option.
“My children got used to the fact that I don’t like going to the park, so they don’t say anything,” she explained.
Because she fears encountering immigration agents, she now chooses to take them to the movies, the pool or church.
“They know the situation and they understand it.”
Another person said that this summer they avoided the South Boulevard area in Charlotte, where this news outlet documented ICE operations and arrests.
However, the person continues taking their children to the pool and working in the mornings.
“Yes, it is scary to go out, but I do it carefully because I have to work,” the person said.
Libraries also emerged as an alternative. One mother said she organizes educational activities for her daughter and looks for free children’s programs at local libraries.
Two other people responded that they had stopped visiting beaches, lakes or rivers and traveling by car to other states.
“Even when you go shopping, there are very few people out. Business owners are going to feel the difference,” another person said.
No Vacations: The Impact on Mental Health
Mireya Lupercio, a clinical social worker and mental health therapist in Wilmington, told Enlace Latino NC that some families are no longer avoiding only travel. They are also afraid to carry out basic activities outside the home.
Lupercio has encountered cases of families who do not go out because they do not have identification to show police or immigration agents. She has also seen patients who stopped attending their sessions in person and chose to continue treatment by video call.
Part of her work with families consists of helping parents recognize that they are not responsible for the barriers they face.
“All of this is not your responsibility. You didn’t create it. This is part of the system,” she tells them. “It’s not because you didn’t work hard enough or because you don’t want to go out with the children or don’t want to give them those opportunities. There are barriers that prevent you from doing this as a parent.”
Staying inside the home for prolonged periods can also affect children and teenagers. Lupercio observes less contact with friends, more time on social media and comparisons with peers who are able to travel.
“There’s going to be that comparison,” she explained. “You start saying, ‘Why me? Why can’t we?’”
The Fear After Charlotte’s Web
Heather Ladov, director of clinical services at El Futuro, told Enlace Latino NC that the fear that began with the November 2025 operations continues to influence the decisions families are making this summer.
During Border Patrol operations in Charlotte, many people avoided going out even to buy food, and some families stopped sending their children to school.
“This has stayed with us, and it is going to stay for generations,” Ladov said. The fear, she explained, did not end when the presence of agents decreased. Families continue living with the possibility that they will return.
The fear especially affects families whose members have different immigration statuses. Traveling by plane causes concern, but so does traveling by car and passing through counties where they fear being stopped or encountering checkpoints.
For that reason, some cancel camps, beach days or visits to relatives in other states and decide to remain close to home. Ladov also noted that some children fear their parents will be detained while they are at school or at camp.
More Time in Front of Screens
In the summer, in addition, when they do not leave home, children spend much more time in front of screens and have less contact with friends, teachers and other members of the community.
“For some, the break from school is very necessary,” she explained. But when it passes without structured activities and without leaving home, other consequences emerge. “We see isolation and a lack of structure,” Ladov said. “So much screen time affects mental health.”
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Participating Less in Community Life
Paola García-Schmidt, one of Camino’s marketing directors, told Enlace Latino NC that no longer traveling or going out also means distancing oneself from other spaces in everyday life.
“When people choose not to do the things they have normally done in the past, they’re not only choosing not to participate in those things,” she explained. “They’re choosing to participate less in the life of the community.”
After the November immigration operations, Camino recorded a decline in primary care and dental visits. Attendance began to recover in March, but it still has not returned to previous levels.
The Camino United soccer program also lost participants. Some children said they had stopped attending practices because their parents were afraid to go out to take them. Participation began to recover this summer.
At Camino Church, the opposite happened. Attendance normally decreases during the summer because families travel or go on vacation. This year, it increased, and the church maintained two services every Sunday.
A Summer Closer to Home
Activities inside the home do not eliminate the fear or replace the spaces that families have stopped frequenting. They show how families are trying to preserve moments of rest and time together while limiting their movements.
Lupercio emphasized the importance of maintaining contact with other people and preventing fear from completely isolating families. “Seeking community and support is what is going to help us get through this,” she said.
It is not only about canceled trips, no longer going to the river or lakes, or giving up a weekend at the beach. It also means no longer occupying public spaces, gathering with other people and freely deciding how to spend one’s time, especially during the summer.
For safety reasons, Enlace Latino NC does not identify any of the people who shared the testimonies included in this article.
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