ICE is waging class war

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is not simply a federal agency responsible for enforcing immigration law. ICE symbolizes the contradictions at the heart of capitalist society—a system that relies on immigrant labor while simultaneously criminalizing and exploiting those very workers. To understand ICE, one must examine how immigration enforcement serves the interests of capital by perpetuating divisions among the working class and operating as a mechanism of social control. This dynamic ultimately harms all workers, regardless of their citizenship status.

At the core of capitalism is a demand for a part of the workforce that is both vulnerable and easily exploited, which is often provided by undocumented workers. These individuals are heavily employed in sectors such as agriculture, meatpacking, construction, hospitality, and domestic work. They frequently receive wages below the legal minimum and endure conditions that violate established labor standards. The constant threat of deportation silences their complaints about wage theft, unsafe environments, or sexual harassment, making them easy targets for exploitation.

ICE does not exist in spite of this exploitation—it exists because of it. The agency ensures the creation and maintenance of a permanent underclass of workers who are unable to advocate for their rights without risking detention or removal. This benefits capital in two significant ways: first, by providing employers with a pool of cheap, exploitable labor; and second, by exerting downward pressure on wages and working conditions for all workers. The threat of ICE involvement limits the bargaining power of the working class, as employers can intimidate workers attempting to organize or replace them with others willing to accept poor conditions and pay.

Immigration enforcement as a tool of division

Immigration enforcement is not truly designed to protect American workers from competition. Instead, it is a tool for creating a tiered labor market where some workers can be super-exploited while others remain insecure and divided.

Borders act as mechanisms of labor control, dictating who can participate in the workforce and under what circumstances. The creation of ICE in 2003, which followed the post–September 11 reorganization of immigration services, did not mark the beginning of immigration enforcement. Rather, it consolidated and militarized longstanding practices rooted in history, such as the Bracero Program (1942-1964) that brought Mexican laborers to the U.S. without offering them pathways to citizenship or labor protections. Even after the program’s end, many workers stayed, joined by family members and others seeking economic opportunity.

The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 offered legalization to some but criminalized the employment of undocumented workers, with enforcement efforts often targeting the workers rather than employers. Today, ICE conducts publicized raids that deport workers while employers usually face little to no repercussions. This historical pattern illustrates that immigration enforcement has consistently prioritized the interests of corporations over human rights or genuine border security. The system’s true function is not to block immigration, but to ensure that those who do arrive remain exploitable and vulnerable.

ICE as a mechanism of state repression

Beyond its economic impact, ICE functions as a tool of state repression, wielding significant powers that threaten civil liberties for all. The agency conducts arrests without warrants, detains individuals indefinitely without trial, and runs a widespread network of detention centers that operate as de facto prisons for civil immigration violations. Many of these centers are privately owned and operated by corporations that profit from high detention rates, creating incentives to keep facilities full. Conditions in these centers often violate basic human dignity, with documented cases of inadequate medical care, sexual abuse, family separation, and even deaths. Children have been held in cages, separated from their parents, and subjected to trauma with long-lasting effects. These are not exceptions but integral elements of a system designed to instill fear and control within immigrant communities.

This repression serves to discipline the immigrant workforce and normalize authoritarian practices that can later be applied to other marginalized groups. The infrastructure of surveillance, detention, and deportation built for immigration enforcement lays the groundwork for broader social control. Allowing the state to treat one group as disposable undermines the rights of all workers.

The ideology of “illegality”: Dividing the working class

Central to ICE’s justification is the categorization of certain people as “illegal,” a dehumanizing label that serves specific ideological purposes. From a socialist internationalist perspective, the very idea of illegal immigration is inherently flawed. Workers are not responsible for unemployment or depressed wages; rather, it is capitalists who drive these conditions by paying low wages and fostering competition among workers. Migration is a natural response to global inequalities created by capitalism, as people seek survival and opportunity in the face of resource extraction, exploitative labor practices, and destructive trade agreements like NAFTA. The borders that ICE enforces are not neutral—they reinforce global power dynamics by allowing capital to move freely while restricting labor mobility, making it harder for workers worldwide to unite and demand fair compensation.

Perhaps ICE’s most damaging effect is its role in dividing the working class. By cultivating fear and resentment toward immigrants, ICE undermines the solidarity necessary for effective labor organizing and political change. When native-born workers blame immigrants for economic instability rather than confronting the employers and systems responsible, their anger is misdirected. This division is intentionally fostered by politicians and media who scapegoat immigrants, despite evidence that immigrants contribute positively to their communities. Such propaganda fractures working-class unity and impedes the formation of movements for economic justice.

History has shown that the success of labor movements depends on solidarity across lines of race, ethnicity, and nationality. Organizations like the Industrial Workers of the World and the farmworker movement led by César Chávez and Dolores Huerta recognized the importance of uniting all workers, regardless of citizenship status. ICE makes this unity more difficult by instilling fear of deportation, discouraging participation in strikes and organizing efforts, and terrorizing communities with immigration raids. These outcomes are not accidental but are fundamental features of the system.

A socialist vision: Solidarity and dignity

Given this analysis, socialists argue that ICE is beyond reform and must be abolished. This stance aligns with broader movements to abolish institutions like prisons and policing, asserting that some systems are so unjust they cannot be humanized through incremental change. Abolishing ICE is not about opening borders to chaos; rather, it is about reimagining immigration policy around human dignity instead of punishment and profit. This would entail decriminalizing migration, ending detention and deportation as standard responses, creating paths to legal status for all residents, enforcing labor laws equally, and addressing the root causes of migration through international solidarity and economic justice. It also means rejecting the for-profit detention industry, which benefits corporations like Core Civic and GEO Group that profit from immigrant suffering and lobby for harsher policies.

Critics may claim that abolishing ICE is politically impossible or that some form of immigration enforcement is necessary. However, political realities are shaped by organizing and struggle. The key question is not whether any system should exist, but whether that system should be based on criminalization and repression or on human rights and justice.

A socialist approach to immigration recognizes freedom of movement as a fundamental human right and rejects the criminalization of those seeking opportunity or safety. It would address the global inequalities driving migration by challenging imperialism, unfair trade, and resource extraction. Such a policy would extend full labor rights to all workers, removing the incentive for employers to exploit undocumented labor. Generous legal immigration pathways would be based on humanitarian needs and family reunification, not employers’ demands for cheap labor. Finally, true internationalist solidarity would unite workers across borders, recognizing that the fight against exploitation is global. When workers organize together, regardless of where they were born, they build real power.

ICE is not simply a flawed agency in need of reform. It is an institution that upholds the interests of capital by creating a vulnerable workforce, dividing workers, and normalizing state repression. Current immigration enforcement represents organized violence against workers, weakening collective power. Real change requires more than policy tweaks—it demands reimagining society to prioritize human needs and dignity over profit and control. Abolishing ICE is a necessary step toward a world where all workers can live with security and dignity. This is not a utopian dream but a practical requirement for building working-class power through solidarity and the dismantling of institutions that keep us divided and afraid.

Opinions expressed in signed articles do not necessarily represent the views of the editors or the Tempest Collective. For more information, see “About Tempest Collective.”
Featured Image credit: ARTIST NAME; modified by Tempest.