ICE Out: The Movement Against ICE Raids Explained
In 2026, two words became one of the most visible protest slogans in the United States: ICE Out. You have seen it on pins at award shows, on banners at marches and on signs in shop windows. Here is where it comes from and what the movement demands.
Where "ICE Out" comes from
The slogan started in May 2025 with the ICE Out of Courthouses campaign, launched by the California coalition of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network. It targeted immigration arrests at county and state courthouses, where people showing up for hearings were being detained.
As mass deportation operations spread to Chicago, New York and Minneapolis, the demand grew: not just out of courthouses, but out of our communities.
Minneapolis and the turning point
In December 2025, the Department of Homeland Security launched Operation Metro Surge, sending thousands of federal agents to the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area. In January 2026, the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE officer sparked vigils and protests across the city. On January 23, around 50,000 people marched in subzero temperatures during a citywide general strike. A week later, hundreds of protests took place nationwide, businesses closed in solidarity and students walked out of class.
From the streets to the stage
"ICE Out" quickly reached popular culture. Celebrities wore pins at the Golden Globes, Bad Bunny said the words in his Grammys acceptance speech, and banners appeared at fashion week and at the Winter Olympics. Each moment pushed the slogan to millions of people who had never been to a protest.
What the movement does
- Rapid-response networks that alert neighbors and document raids.
- Marches, vigils and sit-ins, including actions organized by the 50501 movement.
- Strikes, walkouts and business closures to show economic solidarity.
- Art and visibility: posters, murals, pins and shirts.
Why it is an antifascist cause
Every fascist movement has needed a scapegoat, and migrants are often the first target. Antifascists have always stood with refugees and migrants, from the people who sheltered those fleeing in the 1930s to today's Refugees Welcome movement. The old slogan says it best: no human being is illegal. Read more in our short history of antifascism.
Wear it
ICE Out – No Human Is Illegal T-Shirt: a clear message in red and white on a heavyweight black tee. $26.
More slogans from this year's movements are in our protest shirts collection. We ship worldwide, with free shipping on orders over $50.
