Spotlight: ICE

We have heard a lot about ICE recently, with protests erupting across the country catapulting this federal law enforcement entity to the front and center of American discussions. Many of the current protestors were not even born during the terror attacks on September 11, 2001, when terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing 2 into the World Trade Center and 1 into the Pentagon and killing almost 3,000 people. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) was born out of this tragedy, to help ensure that something like this never happens again. Its creation stemmed from the Homeland Security Act of 2002, which consolidated multiple federal agencies under the newly formed Cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security. ICE absorbed functions that were previously managed by the U.S. Customs Service and the Immigration and Naturalization Service, combining customs and immigration enforcement with investigative authority to address national security concerns. 

Customs enforcement has played a key role in the history of the United States since its inception. Alexander Hamilton is credited with creating the U.S. customs system. When Hamilton became the first Secretary of the Treasury in 1789, the new federal government was in dire need of revenue. Hamilton designed a comprehensive system for collecting duties or taxes on imported goods which was at the time the primary source of federal income. His plan led directly to the establishment of the U.S. Customs Service on July 31, 1789, when Congress passed the Tariff Act creating the first major federal agency under the new Constitution. The mission of the U.S. Customs Service was to collect duties on imported goods, regulate maritime trade, and prevent smuggling.  

Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, the Customs Service became one of the most important and visible federal agencies. Customs houses were commonly found in port cities such as New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and New Orleans, where federal officials inspected cargo, processed in-coming ships, and collected duties that funded federal government operations. Over time, the agency’s responsibilities grew to include immigration processing. Illinois has one surviving historic U.S. Custom House, located in the southern tip of the state in Cairo. The Cairo Custom House, completed in 1872, served as the location for collecting tariffs on imports being traded along the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. It also housed the Federal Court, Post Office, and other government offices. Today, the building, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is home to a museum, with exhibits outlining the history of the surrounding area and several pieces relating to the Civil War. 

For the majority of the 19th century, federal government involvement in immigration was minimal with states handling most immigration related matters until the late 1800s. The late 1800s ushered in significant technological advances and, with them, a wave of immigration to the United States. By the early 20th century, the federal government had created a more formal immigration system, including the Immigration Bureau, which later became the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Immigration enforcement during this era focused heavily on regulating entry at major ports, conducting medical and legal inspections, and restricting immigration based on quotas set by acts such as the U.S. Immigration Act of 1924. Beginning in the mid‑20th century, immigration enforcement became increasingly complex as migration patterns shifted and new economic and security concerns emerged. The Immigration and Naturalization Service expanded to include not only immigration-related border control but also interior enforcement, deportation procedures, and employment verification.  

Following the September 11, 2001 attacks and the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, federal government efforts have increasingly combined immigration enforcement with combatting cross-border criminal activity. Today, ICE’s mission is to protect America through criminal investigations and enforcing immigration laws to preserve national security and public safety. ICE is responsible for identifying, detaining, and removing individuals who violate immigration laws and for conducting criminal investigations into transnational issues such as human trafficking, drug smuggling, cybercrime, money laundering, and illicit trade. ICE’s mission is important and a key component to overall national security and their work is instrumental in keeping our communities safe.