I.C.E. has been making monumental progress in seeping into lively cities and ripping out the backbones of the communities and workforces, which are immigrants. The U.S is built on an immigrant workforce, willing or not.  Slaves and immigrants flooded the nation in its early days and built the first fields, buildings, and essentially carried the economy on their backs, all while getting no credit. Today these marginalized groups continue to be denigrated in spite of their contributions to laying the foundation of the nation and their positive impact on the economy and culture.

 By the very words in the Declaration of Independence, “All Men are Created Equal”, it should be basic knowledge to figure that no matter what country someone is from they are as equal as anyone else. This concept, however, is very hard to grasp to the current Trump administration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E) offices and enforcers. While I.C.E is necessary, the dangers of the way I.C.E is operating and how they neglect protocol is deeply concerning for the future of the United States.

While it is important to have offices such as I.C.E., it is dangerous to have them continue operating the way they currently are. Their officers are masked, unidentified, and plainly dressed, making it easy for any person to impersonate an I.C.E officer and kidnap an innocent civilian. While this is a very hard concept to grasp, a committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs released an article titled “UNCHECKED AUTHORITY. “This article lists victims of I.C.E detainees and victims, along with how they were attacked and assumed they were being kidnapped. This is mostly caused by negligence of the I.C.E officers and it can be assumed they are aware of their transgressions if they keep wearing face coverings to protect their identity. This is a very serious issue as I.C.E officers are required to identify themselves when it’s “safe” and “practical” as per penal code 8 U.S.C. § 287.8.

Now, this proves that the way they are currently operating is a huge security risk, but is not even the worst part about the situation. I.C.E officers don’t even check to see if the civilian they’re detaining is a U.S. citizen, they simply stop any person that looks foreign. No ID, no papers, and nothing identifying is asked from the person being detained. The same stop and frisk policies that have been disputed have now come back tenfold and are costing people their lives. Each person included in “UNCHECKED AUTHORITY” is a U.S. citizen, and each person had been profiled and been questioned or attacked due to this profile. 

These attacks have resulted in the deaths of some U.S. citizens, nine innocent civilians that had been shot or died in a detainment facility just in 2026 alone. Each were stripped of their life not just due to their heritage, but for also fighting for their fellow American. Each of their names have been provided by the American Immigration Council in a blog titled “6 Deaths in ICE Custody and 2 Fatal Shootings: A Horrific Start to 2026”. From the title’s name, their causes of death are clear, their names and deaths are as follows.

• Geraldo Lunas Campos, died in I.C.E custody.
• Luis Gustavo Núñez Caceres, died in I.C.E custody.
• Luis Beltran Yanez Cruz, died in I.C.E custody.
• Parady La, died in I.C.E custody.
• Heber Sánchez Domínguez, died in I.C.E custody.
• Victor Manuel Díaz, died in I.C.E custody.
• Renee Nicole Good, shot fatally by I.C.E agents.
• Alex Pretti, shot fatally by I.C.E agents.

Now if this list of names seems long, there were even more deaths in 2025. Not to mention the possibility of the hundreds of deaths that have gone unreported. Thousands of missing persons reports have been made for some of those that have been taken by I.C.E. These people are not just names in a list, or a count in a death toll, they are real people. They had families that relied on them, children who will never have the parental support their parents promised them. Wives and husbands prematurely fulfill their final vow to their spouse, “Till death do us part”. Nobody should have to go without the one person they promised forever to, nor should their children. Even without a spouse or children, a person should not be killed in the street or in a cold prison, due to a miscreant in an officer’s uniform deciding it was their time for death. 

Many of this violence has been encouraged and covered up by Trump’s Administration. This administration and Trump himself have pushed for these changes and tactics, making egregious comments disparaging immigrants and many marginalized groups. Supporters of Trump’s Administration are now beginning to question his morality and policies. In the aforementioned article titled “UNCHECKED AUTHORITY,” there is an account of a victim who voted for Trump. Brian Gavidia was stopped and shoved against a wall by a DHS (Department of Homeland and Security) officer, the officer twisted his arm and proceeded to go through Gavidia’s belongings while mocking him. The DHS officer’s coworkers had also stopped Gavidia’s colleague and also assaulted him and examined his belongings, some of which was his U.S passport and I.D, proving he was a U.S. citizen. “I voted [for Donald Trump], but not for this…I don’t think Americans, or anyone, should live with this fear,” said Gavidia in UNCHECKED AUTHORITY. 

I.C.E has brought more fear and hate into the U.S than the immigrants they claim are dangerous have. Many citizens are anxious and in fear of being stopped or assaulted by I.C.E, as it could very well result in death. With minimal repercussions from the Trump Administration agents from DHS and I.C.E have become emboldened to resort to more drastic measures for any simple matter. These officers and offices blatantly ignore policies and manipulate information going out towards the media and their families. I.C.E is an important part of a country’s home defenses, but can easily spiral out of control without any structure, which is what is currently happening within the U.S. With the rising death toll and the increasing violence from officers, no one will be safe from this violence if no reform is made, even you.