United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) made recent arrests in New Jersey, sparking controversy over their presence and tactics.
Hudson County and Jersey City held an emergency meeting to discuss ICE’s presence after having specifically issued executive orders barring federal immigration authorities from undertaking enforcement on local properties.
Jersey City mayor James Solomon strongly criticized ICE’s activity as “assaulting immigrant families” and “a disgrace to everything our country stands for” after passing an executive order against the increased, “indiscriminate arrests.”
Some Americans question the morality of ICE’s arrests, raising concerns about the force used and the environments in which the altercations take place.
GOA math teacher Mr. Cortes, whose Mexican-American roots are paramount to his identity, places his concern with ICE from the way its operations are conducted.
“In school, we learned that ‘due process’ is essential to protect against government overreach. However, recent actions by ICE suggest that, rather than following specific legal warrants, individuals are being detained based on racial profiling,” Cortes said. “Students in classrooms should be in their seats, not sitting in a detention center.”
On the contrary, many believe that ICE, despite its highly controversial tactics and goals, is aiding America through the necessary deportation of illegal immigrants.
Junior Paul Raskin said, “ICE’s actions are horrible, yet the principle in which they are doing it, which is to deport illegal aliens including many criminals, is important. I think there can be a better way that ICE can go about achieving that goal which does not include violence or hurting people in the process.”
This month, a student-led school walkout against ICE coalesced across the country.
High-schoolers throughout America partook in rallies that were focused on opposing the increase of ICE raids and demanded the closure of detention facilities. GOA students did not participate in this.
Protests such as these have had significant effects. On February 3rd, President Trump signed a bill to end the partial government shutdown, addressing many of the Democrat’s demands to rein in ICE’s purported abuses.
Trump has already agreed to enforcing federal officers to wear body cameras, yet other compromises have yet to be agreed to. The Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, has openly opposed mandating that officers remove their masks.
ICE’s progression into New Jersey, as well as their general manner of making arrests, creates debate about whether harsher tactics are necessary for solving the immigration crisis. Illegal immigration is a complicated issue that has affected the U.S. for over a century, yet people are unsure of how to solve such a long and complex issue.
President Trump emphasizes ICE’s necessity, describing those detained as “hardened, vicious, horrible criminals” that could “kill people,” and addressing ICE agents as “brave heroes” who maintain America’s order.
According to the New York Immigration Coalition, a Supreme Court decision made in September of 2025 said, “all Latinos, U.S. citizens or not, who work low-wage jobs are fair game to be seized at any time, taken away from work, and held until they provide proof of their legal status to the agents’ satisfaction.”
Sophomore Gilad Gefen, having experience in legally relocating to America, expressed her fears. She said, “It’s necessary to protect both national safety and the dignity and rights of immigrants.”
Gefen continued, “I strongly oppose the way ICE deports undocumented immigrants: it is scary that ICE is taking American citizens because I don’t look very ‘American’ and have an accent.”
ICE’s presence in New Jersey only exists as a small example of the continued operations that have become prevalent throughout the country. Since President Trump’s inauguration in January of 2025, almost 3 million immigrants have fled America, including an estimated 2.2 million self-deportations and more than 675,000 deportations according to the DHS.
The amount of immigrants that have been deported under the Trump Administration within one year and under Obama’s eight year long term are equivalent, reflecting the massive rise in mass deportation.
The Biden Administration also contributed heavily to mass deportation, completing over 4.4 million repatriations and self-deportations.
The expansion of ICE includes the further expansion of detention centers. Within Trump’s historical One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, Congress allocated 45 billion dollars for new ICE facilities and infrastructure.
Detention centers are allegedly not governed to the same standards as typical law enforcement facilities, raising agitation among many as mistreatment reports insinuating the abuse and torture of migrants circulate the media.
“They’re treating them all like criminals… They’re people simply seeking some honor, decency for their children,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in 2019.
When asked by a reporter if the swampy snake and alligator infested environment surrounding the South Florida Detention Facility, nicknamed “Alligator Alcatraz,” was intended for eating detainees in attempts to escape, President Trump responded, “I guess that’s the concept. This is not a nice business.”
Trump’s election was strongly focused, among other things, on fixing the immense immigration issues afflicting the country. While he has delivered on much of the promises, Americans are divided about what measures are needed.
