Home  >  The Documentary Podcast  >  'Looking American' to avoid deportation
The Documentary Podcast
'Looking American' to avoid deportation
The Documentary Podcast
Oct 25, 2025

Drone surveillance, sign language and 'looking American' are all suggestions that Brazilian immigrants are making to each other as ways to avoid being deported. Since the beginning of President Donald Trump's second term, there have been increased Immigration and Customs Enforcement or 'ICE' raids all over the country. These raids are designed to crack down on people from overseas living in the US illegally, and in September ICE focused on Massachusetts, where there is a huge Brazilian population. Many Brazilian people living in the US are there perfectly legally, but many aren't and if they are arrested by ICE they face detention and ultimately deportation. Vitor Tavares of BBC Brasil has been looking into how the Brazilian communities in the US have been using messaging apps to respond to the raids in Massachusetts.

In traditional silk making methods the cocoons are boiled, killing the silkworm inside. But a state in western India is pioneering a new way of making silk, where the silkworm is allowed to mature into a moth, and leave the cocoon still alive. It's called 'Karuna' silk, which means compassion. Shivalika Puri who reports for the BBC in India went to go and meet the people who are making this more compassionate silk.

Spanish people and most Latin Americans have two surnames, but why? It’s a tradition that goes back centuries, but it’s not common across most Christian origin countries – which got BBC Mundo journalist Paula Rosas thinking, and digging into the history.

This episode of The Documentary comes to you from The Fifth Floor, the show at the heart of global storytelling, with BBC journalists from all around the world.

Presented by Faranak Amidi.

Produced by Caroline Ferguson, Laura Thomas and Hannah Dean.

This is an EcoAudio certified production.

More Episodes
Apr 7, 2026
Albania: Land, money and the sea

Albania has had many different faces over the last hundred years. Once ruled by the Ottomans, it became a kingdom before turning into a totalitarian communist state after the Second World War. During this time, no one was allowed in or out; all private property became state-owned, and bunkers sprang up across the country. After the fall of the communist regime, Albania descended into chaos. In 1996, a pyramid scheme that three quarters of the population had paid into, collapsed. People lost everything, and the country, especially the south, erupted into violence.

These days, Albania is aiming to shake off its past and transform its reputation from a country marked by corruption to one known for luxury tourism. With its miles of unspoilt beaches, snow capped mountains, and olive groves that could rival anything Greece has to offer, it’s unsurprising that it’s quickly attracting investors. Among them are Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, who are hoping to build a resort on an island off the coast of Vlorë. They have visited the secluded beaches of Zvërnec and Nartë; currently home only to endangered monk seals, sea turtles, and a few sheep. They, like others, hope to benefit from new government incentives to build luxury 5 star plus resorts.

However, ghosts of Albania’s communist past remain. Land disputes, allegations of corruption, and a lack of infrastructure could derail these resorts before they’ve even broken ground. For Assignment, Emily Wither travels to Albania to find out whether it will be able to re-brand itself, and whether its dream of luxury escapism will become a reality.

This episode of The Documentary comes to you from Assignment, investigations and journeys into the heart of global events.


26min 33sec




'Looking American' to avoid deportation

--:--
--:--