What is ICE? ICE was created as a response to the September 11th terrorist attacks. The attacks on 9/11 were tragic events where the terrorist group al-Qaeda hijacked 4 planes. Two of the planes hit the twin towers in New York, one of the planes crashed into the Pentagon, and the fourth plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. The attacks killed more than 3000 people, including the people on the planes. ICE was then created by the Homeland Security Act to address immigration and customs concerns. ICE, ever since 9/11, has been deporting immigrants, but ever since Trump was put in office, the numbers have been much higher, and the rates are much more alarming. 

             ICE Raids are when armed officers suddenly storm a place, whether it be a courthouse, home, workplace, or any type of public area, and arrest what they call “Illegal Immigrants”.  According to the LA Times, Trump has claimed only to deport “the worst of the worst”, but in April, 57% of immigrants in the USA convicted by ICE had no criminal record, which climbed nationally to 69%. They have affected communities so much that there was a whole day in the USA dedicated to protesting Trump and his presidential agenda, but most notably his agenda to mass deport immigrants from the US. 

(“Illegal Immigrant” is an offensive term to refer to immigrants in a country without the right documentation.)

          No Kings Day was a day of protest. A protest against fascism, a protest against ICE, a protest of military enforcement, and most importantly, a protest against Trump. The protests were not because we are against our military, but rather that we disagree on the way our military is being used. 

(Fascism is a mass political movement and ideology that emphasizes extreme nationalism, militarism, and the supremacy of the nation over the individual.)

According to  Humansrightsfirst.org, “National Guard troops and active duty Marines were deployed to Los Angeles without the consent of the governor, sidestepping the balance between federal and state authority that’s protected under Title 10.” The reason for this deployment was due to the protests actively happening in L.A. because of the ICE raids, and to protect the government’s personnel. The No King Day protests were centered on how our government is using the military for violence and not protection.

       The No Kings Day protests happened all across the country, in small towns and cities alike. Approximately 5 million people across the country participated in this protest, reportedly breaking the world record for the largest single-day protest ever held.

      I interviewed Dahlia Heysell about her time at the Stonefield No Kings Day protest. Dahlia is a senior at Monticello High School, and the No Kings Day protest had a special place in her heart.  She went to the No Kings Day with her Dad and Neighbor. She has described the conditions as very hot, but said how people were handing out water for each other. She made it clear that it was a community event by stating “The crowd of people was stretched about a mile, and when my dad and I moved down there was a new chant and like a new thing to say along, and one of the key things was when I would move down I would see people I knew from all across around, and that was empowering and gave me so much hope for our country.” She said how it had surprised her that there were people from so many demographics. 

          She also stated that “Reading about how innocent people are being stripped from their lives was what I was protesting more than anything, and I really liked the sign ‘no one is illegal on stolen land, ‘ and I really believe that that’s true.” She’s hoping these protests help people realize the issue and the detrimental impacts of these deportations.

            In April of 2025, there was an ICE Raid in an Albemarle courthouse. According to Nicholas Reppucci, who works at the Albemarle County Public Defender’s Office, three officials of the alleged ICE officials did not identify themselves. Reppucci wasn’t in the building for long, but he said, “None of us saw any identification, any badges, and no one said they had a warrant, showed a warrant, or identified themselves as law enforcement. And one, as seen in the video, is clearly hiding his identity.” Many people in the courthouse were recording the incident and weren’t aware of what was going on. The officers threatened to prosecute the bystanders if they tried to intervene. It was made clear that ICE didn’t give any warning to the people working at the courthouse that they would be making an arrest. If you watch the news, you may see ICE arrests in California, New York, Texas, and Florida, places so far away from home, but if you really research it, ICE raids are probably happening in the town over from you.

            I interviewed an Ex US attorney Tara Mcgrath, and we talked about the impact on ICE raids on other areas of the government. She talked about how Trump was making people from other areas of the government like the FBI turn into ICE agents to help with raid numbers and numbers of immigrants deported. She stated “I am very worried for the country because the FBI keeps track of every little phenomenon and complaint and helps bust big drug operations, and helps stop serial killers, and shooters before they can actually harm the country. And with 20% of the FBI now helping ICE I’m worried about the threats that we won’t know about in time to stop them.” Tara talked about Trump letting go of judges who are more lenient on immigrants to get the number of immigrants deported more and more. She stated that “More and more immigrants are self deporting when arrested because it’s harder to get a trial and the conditions in which they are being kept and imprisoned are terrible, so if they have a cousin across the border then it’s just easier to go there instead of waiting for a trial date”

             As you can see, ICE raids are violent and unnecessarily harsh ways to deport immigrants from the USA.Trump is also taking members from other law enforcement organizations to support his agenda, which, in turn, is actually making the country more dangerous than safe while he is claiming ICE is making the country a safer place. ICE raids aren’t just affecting big cities; they’re affecting places like Charlottesville and its surrounding counties, so don’t think it doesn’t affect you, and don’t be surprised when you see ICE, be prepared. 

Interviews:

• Tara Mcgrath
• Dahlia Heysell

Articles:

• LA Times: https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-07-26/trump-deporting-worst-of-worst-reality 
• Migration policy: https://www.migrationpolicy.org/content/ice-arrests-deportations-interior 
• ICE.gov: https://www.ice.gov/history  
• The Guardian: 
• https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jul/21/los-angeles-marines-deployment-recalled 
• Human Rights First: https://humanrightsfirst.org/library/no-kings-day-why-were-standing-up-for-american-ideals/ 
• LCV:https://www.lcv.org/blog/no-kings-rallies-draw-record-breaking-crowds-protesting-trumps-assaults-on-democracy/ 
• CFR: https://education.cfr.org/learn/learning-journey/what-does-fascism-really-mean/what-is-fascism 

VPM: https://www.vpm.org/news/2025-04-23/albemarle-courthouse-ice-raid-nicholas