Family Of ICE Agents Explain How They Really Feel About Their Relative's Job

People need jobs, but some jobs might not be worth the personal loss.

How do we all deal with loved ones who sign up for something we vehemently disagree with?

Redditor Aggressive_Honey3196 wanted to hear from the people who know ICE agents, so they asked:

"Family members of ICE agents, what are your thoughts and feelings about what ICE are doing?"

For the $$

"Had a friend who, after he graduated, joined ICE. He never struck me as a MAGA or some right-wing extremist, so I talked to him about it. He said the money was the biggest factor. he didnt go through any mandatory training, and since I'm working in mental health, dude came over to my home just so he can practice de-escalation."

"So I taught him de-escalation and painless/soft restraints. Last time I heard from him, he said he was going to try to get a different job as he couldn't handle all of the screaming and shouting. Honestly, I was just shocked he wasn't trained at all."

"He didn't even know basic restraining techniques (Grab by the upper chest, with your body behind the person, lean back, so they can't hit themselves or others. Painless.) If he didn't come to me, dude would probably break down in tears after some of the stuff I heard he goes through."

- Spirited-Mousse1915

Stay Away

"A cousin of mine who is British but lives in the States announced the other month that he was considering joining ICE."

"My grandmother - a woman who lived in the UK illegally for 60 years before getting citizenship - and his own mother let it be known that if he ever returns to the UK, he will not be welcome by any family because of the shame he has brought with his ridiculous right-wing views."

"His own brothers have also warned him not to return to the UK."

- Soulless--Plague

He Left

"A guy I knew in college was a marine interdiction agent driving boats out of Long Beach, intercepting suspected shipments of drugs into the country. He loved it and said it felt meaningful. He left last spring, a few months after Trump took office. He said he was told by his supervisors that in the next few months, he was going to be transferred off the boat and onto the streets as a deportation officer. He said he was with Border Patrol, not ICE. They said it really wasn't up to them. So he left. He's piloting some whale watching cruises now."

- tragicallyohio

DESPISED

"If you have any passing interest, look up the Black and Tans and how they were deployed in Ireland around 1920. The similarities to ICE (their recruitment and brutality towards normal people) are shocking."

"Spoiler alert, they were f**king DESPISED by the Irish, and have gone down in history as unqualified thugs, given a license to dispense their cruelty."

- Boulder1983

I Saw It

"I was a test proctor who would proctor ICE exams about 13 years ago. I saw it then. They were the biggest a**holes out of everyone coming through the testing center. Everyone had to follow the rules, which meant no hats, no paper, no jewelry, etc. They would have a meltdown every time."

"I actually quit because of them, because of how awful they were. I was not very political then and actually didn't even know what they did. I just remember them for being bullies. BTW... people testing for insurance certifications were the best!"

- MurrayMyBoy

PSYCH

"I'm always reminded that when my sister tried to join ICE, she was deemed unfit during the psych evaluation for being too empathetic, but passed all the physical qualifications."

"That was in the early 2000’s when it was just forming."

"That tells you ALL you need to know about how much of a psychopath you need to be to be accepted. This is especially true when you realize they LOWERED THE STANDARDS under Trump because they couldn’t get enough qualified people to join."

- Appropriate_Host4170

The Walkout

"I'm a teacher, and a few months back, our students had a walkout to protest ICE due to a prominent local figure being arrested and deported. Pretty much everyone went outside, even kids who really didn't care, because it meant they could skip a class without any real consequence."

"I was covering a class of kids I really didn't know after the protest. One kid said to another, 'Hey, how come you didn't go out?' and he meekly and quietly responded, 'My dad works for ICE.'"

"I felt bad for the kid, and he was clearly uncomfortable with it."

- majorjoe23

The Recruit

"My brother. He went nuts one time when I posted a definition of fascism on Facebook. I didn’t tag him, didn’t include him in any way. He just saw the definition and took it personally. Later, when I was expressing concerns about my wife, who is an immigrant, he physically attacked me. That’s the kind of person they’re recruiting."

- DarwinGhoti

The Family

"As a need to share this with someone, my uncle recently mentioned to my mom that he was considering joining."

"He came here in the 90s, along with his brother, as undocumented folks. They’ve had a number of undocumented folks in their family. But of course, he thinks that now things are different. F**k him."

- Farquade

Past Tense

"My brother-in-law worked for ICE (past tense). Worked there for decades. He quit about a year ago, right before Trump took office. He said, 'The writing is on the wall, and I’m not going to stick around and let my job turn me into a bad guy.'"

"Looks like he was right."

"For the record, he spent his career working on busting drug smuggling."

"Towards the end, it was exclusively focused on fentanyl. He wasn’t looking for undocumented people."

- keboh

Job Needs

"My nephew just started community college, and he's been having a really hard time finding a job (about a year now) - he called me crying because he has gotten a flyer or something to go work for ICE, but he doesn't want everyone to hate him. I'm still funneling him as much money as I can since nobody else can. It does really feel that they're trying to create desperation to increase applications."

- Mister_Brevity

Not that Bad...

"My cousin and his wife have been Cali border patrol for over 15 years. They are terrible parents, both stuck in teenage mentalities, and both pretentious, stuck up douche bags. My cousin likes to tell stories about chasing people down in the desert."

"I haven't seen them in 5 years, and the last time I did, I got in an argument with him about how most of the world actually DOESN'T support the US invading them cause the US is 'not that bad' compared to most other armies. Like bruh, no."

- Pepperonimustardtime

The "A"

"My sister-in-law just joined (who I do love very much). It’s heartbreaking for me in a way I can’t describe. She lives in Kansas and is a college grad, but couldn’t find work anywhere and is excited for benefits. I told her that once she works for ICE, she’ll never find work ever again. Once the dust settles, this is basically the Scarlet A."

- 718Brooklyn

Do you have any stories to add? Let us know in the comments below.