What is ICE and why is it conducting mass deportation raids across the US?

Immigration and Customs Enforcement, better known as ICE, is a federal law enforcement agency established in 2003 in the wake of 9/11 under then-President George W. Bush, with the stated mission of combatting transnational crime, illegal immigration and terrorism. It operates under the Department of Homeland Security, established in 2002.

The last several weeks have seen ICE expanding their raids on areas where immigrants gather, including their workplaces, where many employers say they have the proper paperwork. Protests have also escalated, with clashes leading to critical injuries of demonstrators and migrants.

Why does ICE exist if there are already police and Customs and Border Patrol?

Given its relatively short existence compared with other government agencies, a growing number of people are questioning the necessity of ICE.

CBP officers work along the border (primarily the southern border with Mexico), while ICE work in the interior, though they often coordinate together. They also work closely with other law enforcement.

Why do ICE officers sometimes operate in plain clothes and unmarked vehicles?

The Trump administration have said that ICE agents wear masks to protect their safety. However, many people, including civil rights advocates, attorneys and politicians, have said that ICE officers have the responsibility to show their faces. Earlier this month, Senators Alex Padilla of California (who was attacked by an ICE officer last month), Patty Murray of Washington state, and Cory Booker of New Jersey introduced legislation to require ICE to identify themselves.

The clandestine nature of ICE has led to regular people dressing up as ICE officers, either scaring immigrants for amusement or in other cases kidnapping people off the street.

Who is being targeted by ICE?

The main targets of ICE are immigrants (both documented and undocumented) from Latin America. ICE raids have mainly been taking place at areas where they gather, including Home Depot, where they are often hired for manual labour, warehouses, public parks, and even hospitals, schools and churches, which were until this year generally considered too sensitive and off-limits for raids.

Trump has gone back and forth on whether he wants ICE to raid farms, where employees are often undocumented. Earlier this month, a violent raid on a farm in southern California left one farmworker dead and many more critically injured.

Immigrants and foreign residents who have been active in Palestinian human rights advocacy have been much more public targets of ICE. Columbia University graduate Mahmoud Khalil was the first high-profile case of an ICE detention of a pro-Palestinian campus protester. So far, judges have ruled in his favour over his release from a Louisiana detention facility and from being deported from the US. He is now suing the Trump administration (DHS and ICE) for $20 million, alleging false imprisonment.

Given ICE's growing presence on US college campuses, California State University in Los Angeles announced that they would allow for professors to hold online classes to protect students from campus raids.

What is ICE's budget?

Following the passage of the "Big, beautiful bill" there has been an additional $30 billion added to ICE's base budget through September 2029, with another $45 billion specifically earmarked for detention centres. This means $75 billion added to ICE’s annual budget of approximately $9 billion.

What have been some important legal moments for ICE?

Earlier this month, an attorney with ICE's legal department resigned over the agency’s growing priority to meet deportation quotas (3,000 per day), rather than focusing on combatting crime.

On Friday, a federal judge issued a restraining order to prevent federal agents from stopping people without reasonable suspicion, rather than focusing on their appearance or accent. Trump's "border czar" Tom Homan has already pushed back, saying in a CNN interview that appearance could be a reason for apprehending someone.

In the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a man from Maryland who was mistakenly deported from El Salvador, federal judges have repeatedly issued decisions against his deportation and detention.

What is the status of the movement to abolish ICE?

Even with growing calls for its abolition, it's unlikely that ICE will be abolished anytime soon, given its growing importance in federal law enforcement. The agency's budget and staff continue to grow. There are now more than 20,500 ICE employees throughout the US.

In 2018, midway through Trump's first term, a group of progressive members of Congress introduced legislation to abolish ICE. At the beginning of Trump's second term, however, most initiatives by Congress are focused on limiting ICE’s ability to raid sensitive areas, such as schools and hospitals, pushing for ICE officers to identify themselves, or opposing new ICE incarceration facilities in their districts. As ICE becomes a more normalised part of federal law enforcement, advocacy for more responsible practice has become more commonplace.