Statement on Immigration Enforcement and Community Safety
The Filipino American Democratic Club of New York is clear about where we stand: we oppose ICE and the system of detention, deportation, and surveillance it represents. While immigration enforcement has harmed communities across administrations, the Trump administration—and MAGA Republicans who continue to defend authoritarianism—dramatically expanded and normalized the use of ICE as a political weapon. Immigrant families are deliberately targeted to stoke fear, divide communities, and advance a politics rooted in exclusion rather than shared humanity.
We reject the claim that ICE keeps communities safe. In practice, ICE tears families apart, spreads fear through neighborhoods, and entrenches a carceral system that disproportionately harms Black, Brown, and immigrant communities. This harm is not abstract. It has been deadly. Lives have been lost in connection with immigration enforcement and policing, including Keith Porter Jr., Renee Good, Alex Pretti, and many others.
As Filipino Americans, our understanding of migration is deeply personal. Many of our families came to this country because of U.S. colonialism, labor exploitation, war, and displacement. Others arrived as workers—nurses, caregivers, seafarers, and essential laborers—who helped build this country’s hospitals, homes, and communities. We have always been here. We have always contributed. And we know what it means to build a life in the face of uncertainty.
That history shapes our values and our responsibility to speak clearly. Migration is not a crime. Borders must never be used to justify cruelty or state violence.
Real safety does not come from detention centers, raids, or mass surveillance. It comes from investing in people and in our communities—through affordable housing, accessible healthcare, strong public schools, dignified work, and the social supports that allow families to thrive.
Enforcement-first approaches have failed. Repeatedly. The costs have been borne by immigrant families, by Black and Brown communities, and by people who are told they do not belong—no matter how much they give to this country.
Democrats must do more than condemn MAGA extremism. We must take immediate, meaningful action: rejecting fear-based politics, moving away from enforcement-first frameworks, and advancing policies at the local and federal level that keep families together and communities whole. We support the call to abolish ICE, the passage of legislation such as the New York for All Act (S2235/A3506), and the redirection of resources toward community-based solutions.
Our values demand leadership. We stand in solidarity with immigrant communities and remain committed to building a system rooted in dignity, care, and shared humanity.
