Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents significantly increased their activity across New York City and Long Island on July 31 and Aug. 1, with community groups and local officials denouncing the surge as an escalation of enforcement operations.
Masked agents in body armor were seen throughout Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn, stopping individuals, questioning families and checking identification documents in Bushwick, East Elmhurst and Inwood. One encounter in Inwood, captured on video, showed an agent pepper-spraying a woman who was filming.
Council Member Carmen De La Rosa condemned the federal actions, saying it is "unacceptable to have the presence of ICE in our community without judicial warrants." De La Rosa said she had a responsibility to speak for neighbors who cannot speak for themselves.
Local sources familiar with ICE operations confirmed an increase in activity, particularly in neighborhoods where such enforcement had not previously been widespread, including Inwood and College Point. Those sources also noted a rise in vehicle stops conducted by agents.
NYC ICE Watch said Thursday appeared to mark the beginning of border czar Tom Homan's threats becoming reality. A spokesperson for the group said, "Thursday seemed to be the day that the ICE abductions really began to increase."
The New York Immigration Coalition issued an alert warning residents of heightened immigration enforcement and said it expects the trend to continue across the region.
The surge follows repeated pledges by Homan, who serves as President Trump's border czar, to flood ICE agents into New York City.
The increased activity coincides with growing fears over the impending termination of Temporary Protected Status for Haitian New Yorkers. The end of TPS would strip those residents of legal protections, potentially exposing them to deportation.
Council Member Elsie Encarnacion, who chairs the Council's immigration committee, said rising sightings of ICE agents are creating fear, with some residents avoiding school, medical appointments and shopping.
Council Member Farah Louis Persaud said ICE "continues to terrorize our communities by coming here" and told amNewYork that the presence puts people on edge, calling on federal partners to halt the activity.
Data from advocates shows reported sightings of ICE activity more than doubled in New York City during July compared with June. In parts of upstate New York, sightings quadrupled over the same period.
Some activists claim agents wearing masks and body armor during operations violate state law.
