The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) crackdown is not what the majority of people want. A Gallup poll conducted in June of this year revealed that the number of Americans who wanted a reduction in immigration decreased from 55% to 30%. Additionally, the poll also revealed that 79% of U.S. adults believe that immigration is a benefit to the country, while those who support the president’s handling of immigration enforcement has dropped from 46% to 35%.
Despite the shift in public opinion on immigration and immigration enforcement, the Trump administration continues to move forward with immigration crackdowns, particularly in cities led by Democrats. The administration’s neglect towards public opinion on immigration reflects a federal government more focused on the abuse of power than on the concerns of the American people.
The city of Chicago has been at the forefront of the illegal and often questionable tactics used by ICE agents when it comes to detaining undocumented immigrants. The immigration raids that occurred in neighborhoods of Little Village, Lakeview and Old Irving Park not only show a disregard for public health, but also a disregard to the disruption of people’s lives caused by the raids
As noted by a local resident of the Lakeview neighborhood, ICE agents threw tear gas at the upset protestors without any verbal warning. Instead of peacefully evacuating the area, the agents established a sense of superiority through their unlawful use of tear gas.
Little Village Community Council President Baltazar Enriquez made requests for alternative crowd de-escalation tactics with concern for the health and safety of protestors. However, these requests were ignored by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers.
If U.S. CBP Commander Gregory Bovino was really using the “least amount of force necessary,” as he stated then he would have considered the health risks associated with use of tear gas in the neighborhood of Little Village.
The health risks associated with tear gas aren’t just physical. It can also cause disruptions to one’s psychological wellbeing. As articulated by Liz Winfield, a Benito Juarez community academy teacher, the immigration crackdowns are creating a sense of unease, anger and frustration in which both parents and students are calling in, saying that they “don’t feel safe.”
The arrest of a 16-year-old student who was on his way to class at Benito Juarez Community Academy should be particularly alarming, even for Americans who are staunch anti-immigration advocates. Arresting a junior in high school without clear evidence of their immigration status is not only psychologically terrorizing our youth, but also damaging the support for this country. How do we expect our youth to be patriotic when the very nation that they are supposed to support is harming the communities they grow up in?
Arresting a student for participating in an anti-immigration crackdown protest reflects a dire lack of empathy, compassion and maturity by the CBP agents. Physically attacking a student for participating in a harmless protest is not fulfilling the CBP’s mission of protecting the American people.
Instead of posing public health concerns and disrupting people’s lives, the administration should be more focused on reducing the cost of living for Americans.
In a poll conducted by the Century Foundation, it was discovered that six out of 10 Americans blame the Trump administration for increasing the cost of living in the U.S. Economists from Yale Budget Lab— a non-partisan policy research center — have even predicted that households can expect to see an average increase of $2,300 in costs a year because of Trump’s tariffs. This prediction is quite realistic, given how overall consumer prices rose to 3% in the last year, with grocery prices having gone up by 2.7%. If the administration were really addressing the main concerns of Americans, it would be doing more work to ensure that affordability is a reality, not a rhetorical device used for collecting votes.
The unlawful use of crowd control tactics by CBP officials is a real threat Americans should be focusing on as well. More often than not, the protests that are being senselessly attacked are completely peaceful. Instead of addressing the economic concerns of the American people, the administration is scape-goating immigrant communities. Any federal government that disregards public sentiments and manipulates the nonviolent actions of vulnerable communities into seeming dangerous to society is not any administration that the American people should want to live in.
Alex Alejo is an Opinion Staff Writer for the fall 2025 quarter. He can be reached at aalejosa@uci.edu.
Edited by Casey Mendoza, Annabelle Aguirre