The Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) has become a symbol of modern U.S. state violence. Its agents rip apart families, raid homes, and detain migrants in deadly, inhumane conditions. But ICE did not emerge from nowhere, nor is it a deviation from U.S. norms.

Senator Josh Hawley, chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism, sent letters to three left-wing organizations. Cincinnati Socialists stands in solidarity with these organizations and all who challenge the structures of oppression enforced by the state apparatus.

On June 4, Cincinnati City Council released a report with more superficial ways the council could “support immigrant communities.” The report listed four actions for the council to take, none of which involved eliminating the entity actually threatening immigrant communities: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Reports have confirmed that ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) arrested multiple people in East Price Hill during the first weekend of June. This was not an isolated assault, but part of a broader pattern of state violence and neglect. These arrests bring the number of immigrants held against their will in Butler County Jail, a known ICE contractor, to over 300.