The recent actions by ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) under the Trump administration have had a major impact on several U.S. cities. Here is a quick overview and snapshot of the background of this part of the government.
ICE is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security enforcing immigration and customs laws inside the United States. They focus on deporting people in the U.S. that are here without legal status, investigating immigration fraud and preventing terrorism. It was created in 2003, after the government had a massive reorganization after the terrorist attacks on September 11. Over the past year, however, this organization has been given an extra spark by the Trump Administration.
ICE operates a field office in the city of Portland. The building has been the center of local protests, as they are pushing to threaten permit revocation. According to Conrad Wilson, a reporter for Oregon Capital Chronicle, they have also been detaining people longer than allowed, sparking tension between local officials and federal authorities. Protests, acts of resistance, public backlash, and viral videos have been created due to their actions and it has caused conflict, distrust, and division between the local population and ICE.
This situation is not just happening in Portland. Another major problem and conflict recently is the controversial “Citizens Academy” program that ICE has implemented in Chicago. According to Claudia Valenzuela of the American Immigration Council, this program trains civilians in enforcement tactics, and has sparked lots of backlash for encouraging vigilantism and harming trust within immigrant communities. Chicago is classified as a sanctuary city, and has policies that limit the cooperation of local law enforcement with federal immigration authorities. This helps to protect undocumented immigrants, keeping the city like a sanctuary that cannot go along with federal organizations like ICE. This leads to a strong presence of activists, protests, and public condemnation.
There are already over 200 ICE facilities in the United States for primarily detention and enforcement operations. When Joseph Vandezande, a junior at Sewanhaka High School, was asked about his opinion on the current impacts on ICE, he stated “the current use of ICE by the federal government has been cruel and completely unnecessary” also adding that “the fact that these masked men can just show up wherever they want is very scary”. ICE is only growing in their impact in our country, and the impact has been felt in cities all over the United States.
