“Abolish ICE” is the Moral Position
There is no compromising with fascists.
On Jan. 30, tens of thousands of Bay Area residents walked out of work and school and rallied in Dolores Park to demand “ICE OUT” of their communities. The massive movement, which joined 300-plus protests around the country, came in response to the cruel immigration policies of the Trump administration and the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.
Last week, as Congress negotiated funding for the Department of Homeland Security, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer laid out 10 demands for reforming ICE.
Among them: the unmasking of agents, body cameras, stronger requirements for judicial warrants, and a code of conduct for use of force.
But there is no reforming a fascist agency. Abolishing ICE is the only moral position.
ICE has detained hundreds of children and used fear tactics designed to terrorize immigrants and their loved ones. They have detained protestors for pro-Palestinian speech. They have detained, deported and killed American citizens. These are not the actions of an agency that can be reformed.
And this is nothing new. Under President Obama, ICE deportation levels reached an all-time high, and ICE has historically received bipartisan support.
The reforms now being called for by Democrats in Congress cannot undo the damage inflicted on immigrant communities.
Then there is the caveat that Democrats’ proposed reforms would likely have little effect on ICE, which last year became the most well-funded law enforcement agency in U.S. history. And clearly, from its oppressive and fearmongering practices in Minnesota, ICE has shown no incentive to play by the rules.
Why should we give them an inch when they will take a yard by force?
At Dolores Park, the rising tide of anger over Trump’s immigration policies was voiced by Bay Area residents. Many of those voices were students who have seen the first-hand effects of fear tactics on their communities.
“I shouldn’t have to worry if my friends are going to be taken away from me or their families,” a high school student from Bayview told the crowd at Dolores Park. “We shouldn’t be hearing about people being killed every single day over ICE.”
While Renee Good and Alex Pretti garnered most of the media attention, the full picture is much darker — at least six other people have died in dealings with ICE this year. In 2025, at least 32 people died in ICE custody.
As Democrats in Congress negotiate for piecemeal compromises, communities around the country — including here in the Bay — are showing that they will not stand for ICE terror.
“I am exhausted from fighting year after year for our rights that were given to us,” another student from Balboa High School told the crowd. “Our people are being murdered in the streets, and they’re lying and trying to justify it. There is nothing right about cold-blooded murder.”
Half-measures will not do. Abolish ICE.
