Racial Profiling Enables Trump’s Mass Deportation Plans

Border security chief Tom Homan has been vocal about his plans to “flood” New York City with ICE agents. However, a recent investigation reveals that ICE has already been increasing arrests in the New York area, with a significant focus on Latino communities. A local nonprofit news organization uncovered that between October 2025 and mid-March, there were 430 street arrests in the metropolitan area, with a staggering 93 percent involving Latinos, who represent only 66 percent of the local undocumented population. Alarmingly, many of those apprehended were not the intended targets; agents detained individuals simply because they resembled the person they were pursuing, as indicated by court records. This suggests that ICE is intensifying its enforcement in cities without high-profile raids, operating with apparent freedom to arrest based on racial characteristics.

Following backlash against ICE’s Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota, where a federal judge ruled that agents conducted warrantless arrests primarily based on race, Homan claimed that ICE is now employing “smarter enforcement” strategies in the Twin Cities and beyond. Despite claims of “targeted” arrests, reports indicate that agents are quick to detain anyone they encounter while searching for their actual targets. Although ICE has access to various surveillance tools for tracking individuals, these methods seem less effective than racial profiling. Even if future court rulings challenge ICE’s discriminatory practices, recourse may be limited, as the Supreme Court recently upheld the legality of racial profiling in immigration enforcement.

Court records obtained by the local organization reveal a concerning trend of discrimination, with agents frequently arresting individuals who merely resemble their intended targets, often based solely on skin color or accent. One individual reported being called a “maldito Mexicano” during his arrest. In several cases, ICE agents apprehended people they believed looked like their targets, even after it became clear they had the wrong individuals. For instance, on one occasion, agents repeatedly circled a Staten Island block searching for a 25-year-old Mexican man named Julio. They first detained a 36-year-old Guatemalan man named Isaias, then a 21-year-old Guatemalan named Juan, both of whom were described as “a male who was believed to be the intended target.” They ultimately arrested a 47-year-old man named Alejandro simply for leaving the monitored building. All three were taken into custody, with the first two being deported after detention.

Nationwide, ICE conducted over 400,000 arrests in the first 14 months of Donald Trump’s second term, according to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. An increasing number of these arrests involve Latinos with no criminal records or outstanding deportation orders, indicating that agents may be engaging in illegal profiling, as highlighted by a Cato Institute analysis. Several individuals detained by ICE have filed lawsuits claiming they were targeted not for their legal status but due to their race. However, a Supreme Court ruling last September effectively sanctioned racial profiling, allowing ICE agents to stop individuals based on their “apparent race or ethnicity,” language, or accent.

ICE isn’t the only agency patrolling the streets for immigrants. Under Trump’s directive, various agencies, including the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations, have been instructed to prioritize immigration arrests, and local police departments have also begun collaborating with ICE. The number of 287(g) agreements, a program from the Clinton era that allows police to enforce immigration laws, has surged. On his first day back in office, Trump mandated that the DHS secretary maximize these agreements. By February, there were 1,412 active 287(g) partnerships nationwide, nearly all established in 2025.

There are three types of 287(g) arrangements: jail enforcement, warrant service officer models, and a task force model that permits officers to stop individuals for suspected immigration violations. The Obama administration suspended the task force model in 2012 due to widespread allegations of racial profiling and civil rights violations, particularly in Maricopa County, Arizona, where then-Sheriff Joe Arpaio implemented a notoriously aggressive enforcement strategy. However, Trump reinstated this model, which now constitutes the majority of new agreements. A DHS spokesperson stated that officers participating in the task force model receive 40 hours of training on immigration and civil rights law, along with ICE’s Use of Force policy, a significant reduction from the month-long training under previous administrations.

Texas and Florida are at the forefront of this trend, having enacted laws requiring local law enforcement to cooperate with DHS. In Florida, even Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers are now using Flock cameras to assist ICE. The Trump administration aims to expand 287(g) agreements nationwide, not just in states with large Latino populations. There has been a notable increase in these agreements across the Midwest, with DHS offering financial incentives for officers who participate, including monthly bonuses of up to $1,000. This effectively creates a financial motivation for racial profiling, with critics labeling the bonus as a “bounty” for immigrants.

Even when arrests do not lead to immediate deportations, they disrupt immigrant communities and funnel individuals into remote detention centers, isolating them from legal assistance. To secure release from ICE detention, a person must file a habeas corpus petition in the jurisdiction where they are held, complicating the process for those arrested in New York and transferred to less favorable jurisdictions. A review of 1,200 habeas petitions filed between October 2025 and March of this year revealed a troubling increase in street arrests, many following patterns of racial profiling.

Reports indicate that ICE is adjusting its tactics without actually reducing enforcement. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, who took over after Kristi Noem’s departure, has expressed a desire to keep ICE out of the spotlight, suggesting a more discreet approach to enforcement. However, ICE continues to patrol the streets, albeit with less visibility. In New York, this shift may be an attempt to avoid scrutiny. Earlier in Trump’s second term, ICE agents were apprehending individuals in federal courthouses during or after immigration hearings, drawing significant criticism from legal observers and advocates.

On the bustling streets of New York City, street arrests are less likely to attract attention—at least for the time being. In February, after agents were spotted in the predominantly Latino Brooklyn neighborhood of Bushwick, volunteers intervened, blowing whistles as agents made an arrest. They pounded on the agents’ car windows and managed to obtain the arrested individual’s contact information before he was taken away. According to reports, the volunteers connected him with a lawyer who helped secure his release from ICE detention. However, the fear remains palpable. The arbitrary nature of these arrests means that anyone could be targeted, but the reality is that ICE is primarily arresting individuals based on their skin color. Racial profiling appears to be the only way DHS can fulfill Trump’s promise of mass deportations.