ICE agents used racial slurs to refer to Latinos, videos and texts appear to show
New Court Documents Reveal Racial Slurs Used by ICE Agents
Tyunews.com – Recent legal filings have brought to light body camera recordings and text message exchanges suggesting that federal immigration officers deployed offensive language toward Latino individuals during enforcement activities in Los Angeles throughout the previous summer. The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California incorporated these materials—some portions blurred or redacted—into a motion requesting a preliminary injunction. This legal action aims to halt what advocates describe as systematic "race-based profiling" conducted by federal personnel during traffic stops under the Trump administration's broader immigration enforcement campaign.
Video and Text Evidence
One recording captures an officer remarking:
"Yeah, just plug us in wherever you see some tonks and we'll jump out."
The term "tonk" functions as a derogatory label among agents, referring to the noise produced when an immigrant's head is hit with either a flashlight or baton. Another clip features an officer stating:
"There was a guy, I'm pretty sure he's wet he was just sitting in that minivan."
According to the filing, "wet" represents an abbreviated form of a slur directed at Latino populations. Additional text conversations between officers were also submitted alongside the video evidence. One message reads:
"Some of these people are stupid. Why would you post on social media that you're wet."
A subsequent text from another agent noted:
"Btw tonks everywhere selling food for the 4th festivities in long beach right now."
Lawsuit Background and Judicial Response
The ACLU initiated legal proceedings last year representing multiple individuals, including American citizens, who experienced questioning, detention, or stops by immigration personnel within California's Central District. U.S. District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong initially granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting stops conducted exclusively on racial grounds. However, the Supreme Court subsequently removed those limitations.
Mayra Joachim, who serves as deputy director of immigrants' rights at ACLU SoCal, commented on the newly released documents:
"This filing should shock the conscience. Evidence gathered from the government has confirmed what our communities have known all along: immigration officers are flagrantly violating the law by detaining people without justification and often primarily because of the color of their skin."
Department of Homeland Security Statement
When ABC News contacted a Department of Homeland Security representative regarding whether the use of such language contravenes agency policies, no direct answer was provided. Instead, the spokesperson emphasized:
"Our agents are focused on protecting the American people -- not entertaining performative outrage."
The statement continued with a question directed at media coverage:
"Where is the media's outrage for Angel families who lost a loved one to illegal alien crime?"