By Leonard Chan and Angela Wu

With so much focus being placed on the upcoming election, less attention has been paid to the continuing operations of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Even when the news has mentioned actions being taken by ICE, little is being said about Asian and Pacific Islander (A/PI) residents being caught up in ICE operations.

The organization Stop AAPI Hate has created a comprehensive report on ICE as it pertains to A/PIs. You can find it in their September 2026 article “How Asians and Pacific Islanders Are Being Impacted by ICE | What the Data Reveals.” Stop AAPI Hate has also created a very informative website (filled with data and graphs) which they call the “Asian & Pacific Islander ICE Tracker.”

Some of the Findings in the Stop AAPI Hate Report

Since the second Trump administration has come into power, there have been over 21,000 arrests and nearly 10 thousand deportations of A/PI residents (January 20, 2025 to August 6, 2026). As a comparison to the Biden administration this is an increase of 436% for arrests and 1103% for deportations over the same number of days (for the Trump administration using the date range listed above and the same number of days before January 20, 2025). As compared to all ICE activity the A/PI community has been impacted harder (the overall increases for arrests is 219% and for deportations 356%).

Among the Asian groups that had the most arrests by ICE include Indians (6,111, 28.4%) and Chinese (5,276, 24.6%). These two groups were also the most frequently deported (Chinese 2,378, 24%; Indian 2,349, 23.7%).

There have been 11 deaths of A/PIs while they were in ICE custody. Since the end of the date for the Stop AAPI Hate report, there was another death of a Chinese immigrant in the Northern Mariana Islands. In this case, the immigrant appears to have committed suicide. Among the others that died in ICE custody, another person may have committed suicide. One person that was not counted in the report came from Iran.

Ramifications

Whether or not the government has good reason to arrest and deport these individuals, their loss does seriously impact the individuals, their families, and all of us.

A nonprofit organization called the Minnesota Budget Project has an article called “ICE spike means 32,000 fewer jobs in Minnesota.” One of the areas they explored is how U.S. born workers lose jobs as a result of ICE’s aggressive actions. They highlight five points on what they describe as a domino effect.

Point 1: immigrant and non-immigrant workers often have complementary roles. When one worker disappears, work for the other may also dry up.

Point 2: When immigrants are removed, it not only affects the labor market, but it also decreases the number of consumers.

Point 3: High profile ICE actions may also be done to have a fear instilling impact. Those with legitimate immigration and citizenship status may stay away from work and other activities to avoid being caught up in reckless ICE activities.

Point 4: Workers with questionable immigration status have also been exploited by some unethical employers. Studies have shown that as ICE activities increase the number of on-the-job accidents and minimum wage violations for all workers also increases, as workers are less likely to report workplace labor law abuses and workplace safety issues.

A Few Cases of Actual A/PIs Affected by ICE Actions

Looking at the data is a good starting point to stay informed, but what we have to keep in mind is that there are actual people behind all these numbers.

Here are some examples –

On July 31, 2026, Cornelius Kaihau Holani was arrested as an illegal alien from New Zealand by ICE. He is a 20-year-old citizen of New Zealand of Tongan ethnicity with no criminal record or prior immigration enforcement history. His mother is a green card holder, and his stepfather is a U.S. citizen. When Holani was 17 years old, he was lawfully admitted to the United States by the Biden administration under the Visa Waiver Program in July 2023. This program permits citizens of participating countries to enter the United States for up to 90 days without obtaining a visa. In violation of our nation’s laws, he overstayed his visa. After being detained at Oakland International Airport, he was forced into signing a document. Holani signed the document without knowing its contents, and the government now cites it as evidence that he gave up his right to fight his deportation.

On August 5, 2026, U.S. The District Judge ordered his release via a habeas petition, ruling that ICE likely violated basic due process rights and caused irreparable harm.

Read a Newsweek article about Cornelius Kaihau Holani.

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On March 17, 2026, Meenu Batra was arrested by federal immigration officers at Valley International Airport in Harlingen, Texas, while on her way to Wisconsin for a work related trip.

Batra has worked for over 20 years as a licensed court interpreter. In 1991 she immigrated to U.S. as a teenager and applied for asylum after her parents had been killed in India because of their Sikh faith. In 2000, she was granted “withholding of removal” status instead of asylum. This allowed her to work, but not to apply for permanent status.

After six weeks in detention, a federal district judge ordered Batra’s immediate release, stating that Batra’s due process rights were violated because she was she was arrested without prior notice, interview, or a formal process.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security stated to CBS News that they considered Batra an “illegal alien," adding that "employment authorization does not confer any type of legal status.”

While Batra has been released from custody, she has applied for permanent residence through her youngest child who serves in the U.S. military. Her case remains ongoing.

Read a CBS News article about Meenu Batra

There are many other stories, including reports on each of the detainees that died while under ICE Custody. Check out the ICE Detainee Death Reporting web page to read some of these cases. Included among them is a report on Chaofeng Ge who was said to have committed suicide even though the report said that he was found hanging with his hands and feet bound.