Some political figures are calling for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) – a federal agency – to be abolished. As Americans, it is important for us to understand what ICE is, and what kind of work ICE agents do.
According to ICE, the agency enforces more than 400 federal statutes, and focuses on immigration enforcement, preventing terrorism and combating the illegal movement of people and trade. There are over 20,000 ICE employees in the United States and dozens of other countries.
From catching illegal aliens accused of committing violent crimes, to preventing violation of human rights, from combating drug crimes to preventing illegal weapons trade, ICE agents have tremendous responsibilities.
Every day, ICE agents put their own lives at risk to keep us safe from harm, and they catch those who break our laws. In this day and age, when Americans are always hearing about our immigration laws being broken, we need ICE.
As a legal immigrant and a naturalized U.S. citizen, I believe that ICE should be supported, and not demonized, and certainly not abolished.