ICE raids are a strategy used by U.S. immigration enforcement. They are conducted by the federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security and were implemented in 2003 after 9/11. This department was created to prevent terrorism, not to deprive working people of opportunities. The government justifies these raids by stating they protect us from “dangerous” illegals, but the techniques in place to carry out this purpose are unjust and unconstitutional. Raids separate families, deny legal support, and spread fear. This raises serious questions about human rights and justice: the values America claims to uphold.

When agents storm job sites, they aren’t capturing dangerous criminals; most of the people detained are simply trying to support their families. The largest workplace raid in Mississippi in 2019 clearly displays this cruelty. Nearly 700 people were detained in this record-setting operation. Hundreds of kids came home from school to find their parents gone. This same fear exists in New Mexico. Nearly 49% of residents are Hispanic, and even if you aren’t, my guess is you know someone who is. New Mexico also relies heavily on immigrant labor in agriculture, construction, and other essential industries. Is this what we should stand for as a society?

Better, more humane options exist, and they are more effective than raids. Instead of surprise raids, the government should focus on conducting thorough background checks, establishing legal pathways, and implementing policies that prioritize the well-being of the community while still upholding the law. Programs like DACA, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, have demonstrated that providing stability enables young people to work and become an integral part of their community without fear of losing it. If better alternatives exist, we shouldn’t accept injustice in our communities.

A common justification of these strategies is that they ‘create fear’ to deter immigrants, showing that if they come over, it wouldn’t be safe. This is exactly the behavior that should stop. Regardless of who may be entering the country to work, shouldn’t we support them rather than deter hardworking individuals? The United States is supposed to be a harboring country. Using fear to ensure compliance is something our society should have moved past by now.

We need to stop deporting innocent, hard-working people. Deportation should be focused on individuals who pose real threats, not on parents, laborers, and long-time community members. Immigrants make up nearly one-fifth of the American labor force; removing them weakens families, schools, communities, and the nation as a whole. ICE raids do not make us safer; they make us smaller and more fearful. If America truly values opportunity and dignity, then our immigration system must reflect those ideals. It’s time for us to reject policies rooted in fear and stand with the people who keep our communities alive. Ending cruel and unnecessary raids is not just a political choice, it’s a moral one.

Sources

• Igielnik, Ruth, et al. “What Polls Say about Americans’ Views on Immigrants and Immigration.” The New York Times, 19 Nov. 2025, www.nytimes.com/2025/11/19/polls/how-americans-feel-immigration.html?searchResultPosition=10.
• Mitchell, Schuyler. “Trump’s Cruel Crackdown Violates Immigrant Families’ Rights.”
• Gale Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection, Gale, 2025. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, link.gale.com/apps/doc/KKIWPX881994987/OVIC?u=nm_s_albuqacad&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=fcdf600e. Accessed 19 Nov. 2025.
• National Review Editorial Board. “Workplace Enforcement Is Essential in the Fight Against Illegal Immigration.” Gale Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection, Gale, 2025. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, link.gale.com/apps/doc/RFVVII894019174/OVIC?u=nm_s_albuqacad&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=802eacef. Accessed 25 Nov. 2025.
• Noonan, Peggy. “Stop the ICE Workplace Raids.” The Wall Street Journal, 31 July 2025, www.wsj.com/opinion/stop-the-ice-workplace-raids-immigration-trump-illegal-5e09b05f?mod=Searchresults&pos=5&page=1. Accessed 19 Nov. 2025.
• Renkl, Margaret. “Opinion | the ICE Raids in Nashville Aren’t about Public Safety.” The New York Times, 22 May 2025, www.nytimes.com/2025/05/22/opinion/ice-raids-nashville-immigrants.html?searchResultPosition=8.
• Taft, Isabelle, and Juan Arredondo. “Many Arrestees from Trump’s Biggest Workplace Immigration Raid Have Stayed Put.” The New York Times, 4 Nov. 2024, www.nytimes.com/2024/11/04/us/arrestees-trump-workplace-immigration-raid-mississippi.html?unlocked_article_code=1.508.ksUK._ZVg95TJIWMm&smid=url-share.