ICE Raids and Overpolicing: A Call for Black and Immigrant Solidarity – Davis Vanguard

In an opinion piece published by USA Today, author Jonathan Jean-Baptiste expresses deep concern about ICE raids occurring across the country and warns that the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown threatens the rights and safety of communities far beyond those being targeted. The Trump administration has made immigrants a focus of law enforcement efforts over the past year, and Jean-Baptiste argues that these tactics echo the long history of surveillance and overpolicing experienced by Black Americans.
The author writes, “As a Black, first-generation citizen born in the United States, who grew up in an overpoliced immigrant community, I feel echoes of painful memories.” Jean-Baptiste claims that the fights for social justice intertwine between Black Americans and immigrants and advocates for solidarity between the groups amid the attacks of the Trump administration.
He expresses discontent with what he views as neutrality within the Black community during the ICE raids because the Black community also has a history of being highly surveilled and overpoliced. The author highlights his personal experience growing up in a neighborhood with a large Caribbean population, where overpolicing was normalized. He says, “I was always struck by how normal the militarization of our neighborhood seemed to some locals, even though it was anything but.” He recalls visiting more ethnically diverse neighborhoods, where he noticed “people there didn’t face constant police checkpoints, frequent stops or fear of armed officers.”
Jean-Baptiste expresses disappointment with the Black community, where many feel that “this war on immigrants doesn’t affect them or isn’t their fight.” He pushes for more involvement from Black Americans to uplift immigrants and fight for social justice, arguing that the movement for Black liberation is intertwined with the struggle of immigrants. He states that “alliances between immigrant and Black communities have historically advanced all civil rights movements.”
He continues by explaining how the attack on immigrants directly impacts the Black community. He highlights Operation Midwar Blitz, in which ICE officers raided a predominantly Black neighborhood in Chicago “with the stated intention of arresting undocumented residents who might have warrants.” The operation resulted in the detainment of many Black residents, including four children. “Those children weren’t criminals, but they witnessed ICE agents without warrants break down doors and zip-tie neighbors for hours,” which he says will likely cause lasting trauma.
The Chicago case is one of many examples of the disproportionate treatment of Black immigrants that concerns the author. He cites federal data, noting, “Analysis of federal data by the Black Alliance for Just Immigration shows that Black immigrants with a criminal conviction have a 76% chance of being deported compared with 45% of the overall immigrant population with criminal convictions.” He argues this disparity demonstrates how immigration crackdowns disproportionately harm Black immigrants, making it more urgent for the Black community to fight for immigrant justice. As he puts it, “The end of due process for immigrants is the end of due process for everyone.”
Jean-Baptiste concludes by emphasizing the urgency of mobilizing the Black community to fight for immigrant justice to create a safer environment for Black children in the United States. He explains, “The situation facing America’s immigrants now serves as an opportunity for Black children to see their parents be good leaders and speak out against injustice.” If Black children see the impact of their parents refusing to tolerate injustice, he argues, it may encourage them to become advocates for a brighter future.
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Leela is a current 3rd year at the University of California Irvine. She is currently a senior planning to graduate with a double major in Political Science and Criminology, Law, and Society. She hopes to pursue law school in the future and work in the sector of public policy. Some of her academic interests include advocacy for immigration reform, gender inequality, and race inequality. She’s interning with Vanguard to learn more about court proceedings and the injustices related to them.
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