While it has taken months to bring President Trump's travel ban to reality, its effects began months ago. A local immigration attorney has seen that in his practice which has doubled its case load over the last year.
"I think there's a humanitarian crisis on the Northern and Southern borders of this country where asylum seekers are confused and feel that their claims are not going to be judged on the merits and they're worried," said immigration attorney Matthew Borowski.
According to Borowski, immigration courts are suffering with major backlogs. The crush has revealed a shortage in the number of attorneys who understand immigration law.
"We're seeing a spike in the number of people detained. They already got people in county jails rather than the federal detention facility in Batavia," said Borowski.
"We're seeing a spike in female detainees. Families being detained with children."
Borowski says "humanitarian parole is being denied almost as a general policy." In many cases, those seeking asylum to Canada are being turned over to U.S. Immigration. Often they are detained and held without bond, Borowski said.
The attorney agrees with many who believe that immigration has provided a positive impact on Buffalo.
"A lot of these refugees are here contributing to the fabric of the city. If we stem that flow, I think Buffalo's going to be worse off for it."