Immigration and Customs Enforcement—more commonly known as ICE—is a federal agency that was created in 2003 to prioritize Americans’ safety and well-being by enforcing immigration laws. Although ICE was created over two decades ago, it has recently been thrust into the limelight by the Trump administration and Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill. The ICE administration has been utilizing raids where agents arrive at premises with the prospect of detainment, using deceptive and illegal tactics to capture those (or those suspected) without legal status. ICE raids tear apart loved ones, destroy our economy and are completely immoral.
The re-election of Donald Trump changed how ICE raids are conducted. According to an article from Government Executive, before the Trump administration, ICE targeted immigrants with serious criminal status and only detained people after thorough investigation and research. This deliberate, careful work continues to be ignored as the Trump administration tells ICE to simply make as many arrests as possible.
Nativism has existed in American society for over centuries and occurs because of ignorance and fear. Specifically, people fear immigrants taking away jobs and opportunities.
Immigrants make up a large percentage of the workforce, stimulating America’s economy. According to a 2024 study by USA Facts, Immigrants make up around 20 percent of the work force. The belief that immigrants take jobs away from American citizens is unjust and has no factual basis. In fact, immigrants often perform unwanted, grueling, cheap work that American citizens are unwilling to perform. If these immigrants were deported under President Trump’s policies, it would be a struggle to find those willing to take their places.
The U.S. is historically a country of immigrants. According to the Pew Research Center, the U.S. hosts more immigrants than any other country in the world. Immigrants have spent years developing a life for themselves, families and generations to follow. All this hard effort and determination can be confiscated in a matter of seconds by ICE and their deportation methods. “I don’t think it’s fair…kicking people who are already here out cause they already have lives and things like that,” freshman Milona Gjoni said. “I think it’s pretty messed up.”
The popular and irrational myth that immigrants commit crimes and increase the U.S. crime rate has been proven false. A 2020 study from Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences showed that U.S. born citizens committed double the amount of crimes of undocumented immigrants. Why should immigrants be deported if they aren’t causing harm to our nation?
Rather than promoting security and safety, ICE raids sparked widespread, justified fear across the country. Schools are supposed to be safe spaces where students are free to learn. How can students feel safe when under the threat of ICE raids and deportations?
Although it is unclear whether MCPS students have been picked up during school hours, ICE is still affecting our education. ICE raids affect the school life for everyone, not just those with Latino heritage. Schools around Montgomery County have been protesting ICE’s entry into schools.“I do know my friends at Blair went to the March for Students Fair to talk about the recent deportation of their student in Blair,” sophomore Aashi Bansal said.
ICE is out of control. It has ventured far beyond its original purpose of preserving national security and safety following the disastrous 9/11 attacks. Taking innocent, honest people away from the homes that they have worked tirelessly to secure for themselves does not fit ICE’s original purpose, and needlessly destroys lives. Immigrants pose no threat to society. ICE needs to be restricted and their raids need to be put to a stop.
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