Daily number of people aged under 18 detained by ICE (US Immigration and Customs Enforcement): Sept 2023 to Oct 2025
graph by the Marshall Project; slow reveal by Jenna Laib
Type of Graph: area graph
Purpose
This slow reveal is designed to support analysis and discussion of both the data and the design choices. The questions in the slide deck invite learners to examine trends, relationships, and possible interpretations. This graph invites students to estimate values, discuss scale, apply multiplicative comparisons, and discuss implications for this data.
About This Graph
This visualization is not provided for reuse or redistribution. Readers and educators are encouraged to view the original visualization in its published context.
Original Visualization:
Flagg, Anna and Shannon Heffernan. “‘Why Is This Happening to Us?’ Daily Number of Kids in ICE Detention Jumps 6x Under Trump.” The Marshall Project: January 29, 2026.
Accessed at: https://www.themarshallproject.org/2026/01/29/ice-kids-in-detention-numbers
Data Source:
Immigration and Customs Enforcement via Deportation Data Project
Accessed at: https://deportationdata.org/index.html
More about the Deportation Data Project’s data processing, obtained through FOIA requests then minimally processed: https://deportationdata.org/docs/ice/processing.html
In The Classroom
There are many different mathematical connections that can be made to this data and data visualization.
Potential Math Content: stacked area graph, estimating values, scale along the y-axis, multiplicative comparisons
Potential Content Connections: immigration, social justice, policy
Sustainable Development Goal(s):
#3 – Good Health and Wellbeing
#16 – Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions
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Wow – is this a politically motivated – agenda driven graph. Why not go all the way back to Obama years? This is really an inappropriate graph to be showing to my young students! I now know where your agenda is
Kristin Walch 8th Grade and 6th Grade Science Teacher Duluth Edison Charter Schools duluthedison.org https://www.smore.com/app/reporting/out/gxm79?u=http%3A%2F%2Fduluthedison.org%2F&t=duluthedison.org&w=w-1933662478&i=&l=l-3871787040 North Star Academy kristin.walch@duluthedison.com Stuart.Johnson@duluthedison.com
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I did not create this data visualization, although I did choose to use it.
I would love to have a graph that stretches back to the creation of ICE during the GWB administration, including all of the Obama years. I think there is a misconception that Obama was easy on immigration, when there were children incarcerated during his administration, too. Also many of the infamous “cages” were build during the second Obama administration term.
I am firmly against the incarceration of children.