Discussion: ICE Raids Impacting Black and Latino Communities

Arturo Dominguez and Dr. Allison Wiltz, Extreme Arturo
Jul 20
2 min read

A recording from Arturo Dominguez and Dr. Allison Wiltz's discussion on the importance of Black, Indigenous, and Latino solidarity

In this live discussion, Dr. Wiltz and I discussed how ICE raids are impacting Black and Latino communities and the importance of Black and Latino solidarity in moments like the Civil Rights protests in 2020 and state-sanctioned hostility against non-white communities like we’re seeing today.

Without coalition building, we are in big trouble.

Key Points

Black migrants in the U.S. experience disproportionately higher rates of deportation by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) compared to other groups. This is often triggered by routine police interactions, like traffic violations, leading to entanglement with the criminal legal system and subsequent ICE involvement. The issue is further complicated by the historical and ongoing criminalization of Black people in the U.S., which intersects with immigration enforcement.
This disproportionate targeting is rooted in a history of systemic racism and the criminalization of Black communities, which extends to immigration enforcement. Once flagged by ICE, Black immigrants can face detention, and their cases are often funneled through the immigration detention system, which has been linked to mass incarceration.
Black migrants make up 5.4% of the undocumented population in the U.S., but they make up 20.3% of migrants facing removal based on criminal convictions. Research exposes how racial disparities in policing have created a pathway from routine life to permanent family separation for Black migrants.

Black Voices

Despite some Latinos claiming that we are on our own and don’t have support from other communities, particularly the Black community, in our talk, Dr. Wiltz and I proved that to be a false and harmful narrative. We also discussed how silence and collective shoulder shrugging are equally problematic.

Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI)":

“We are the ones—Black people, regardless of citizenship—who must define what resilience and resistance look like in this moment,” said Nana Gyamfi, executive director of Black Alliance for Just Immigration. “The first human beings who migrated, allowing people to exist all over this planet, were Black people.”

California Black Power Network (CBPN):

“Solidarity has always been part of our movement, and it always will. If you let them divide us, you’re feeding into white supremacy,” Kevin Cosney, Associate Director of the California Black Power Network.