ICE Whisperer: Confessions from Inside Immigration Enforcement
A journalist creates a space for immigration enforcement officers to share their experiences anonymously amidst increased raids and operations under the Trump administration.
Minneapolis, MN: Recent immigration actions in cities like Minneapolis have brought attention to how officers work.
As President Trump’s second term focuses heavily on immigration policy, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) now has more than $80 billion in extra funding.
Since January, DHS has hired over 12,000 new agents for immigration enforcement agencies like ICE and CBP.
Immigration officers often wear masks and drive unmarked vehicles during raids, making it hard for people to know which agency they work for.
Karl Loftus created the Instagram project “Confessions of an ICE Agent” to let officers share their thoughts privately.
The project started after Minneapolis saw increased immigration enforcement activity.
Loftus asks questions and keeps the identities of officers secret so they can speak freely about their experiences.
Through the project, Loftus shares stories from different types of immigration officers.
Some officers express concerns about leadership decisions and where the agency is headed.
Others talk about feeling uncomfortable with certain policies they have to follow.
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) operates alongside ICE for different types of immigration work.
Since 2025, Congress has passed new legislation affecting how immigration law is enforced across the country.
The 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act gave DHS the largest funding increase in over a decade.
Minneapolis residents now report more frequent sightings of federal agents making immigration arrests.
Before the increased enforcement focus, Karl Loftus documented natural disaster recovery efforts across America.
He first got involved with disaster response during Hurricane Florence in North Carolina in 2018.
A spokesperson for DHS stated they cannot verify anonymous interviews shared through this project.
This is something that has happened since immigration raids increased across major US cities.
The department continues to say they focus on public safety while following federal law.