ICE Is 'Accountable' Only To Itself. Judges Are Just Learning What Migrants Already Knew.
📰 THE STORY: Federal judges are reportedly 'struggling' to hold Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) accountable for dozens of violations of court orders, leading some judges to call on their colleagues to 'draw and hold the line' as immigrant freedom cases overwhelm the courts. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: ICE, formed in 2003 under the Department of Homeland Security
in the wake of 9/11, inherited and expanded the ruthless tactics of its predecessor, the INS. This 'struggle' is not new; it's a feature, not a bug, of an agency with a documented history of operating with wide latitude and often outright impunity. From family separations under Trump following the 2018 'zero tolerance' policy, to the numerous deaths in ICE custody—71 deaths between 2003-2015 alone
were documented by the ACLU—the agency's disregard for legal process and human rights is deeply embedded. Double Standard: Imagine if a foreign government's immigration agency consistently defied court orders in a Western nation. The headlines would scream authoritarianism, human rights abuses, and a breakdown of the rule of law. Yet, when the US agency does it, The Independent frames it as judges
'struggling' to find a solution, rather than highlighting a systemic, state-sanctioned problem. This sanitizes the violence and exceptionalizes US actions, portraying them as unique challenges rather than deliberate policy. Follow the Money: The post-9/11 'security state' apparatus, of which ICE is a crucial part, is a massive growth industry. Private detention centers, paid billions by the US