New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on Tuesday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement is not showing “humanity” in its duties.
ICE has received rampant criticism from Democratic lawmakers following an ICE officer-involved shooting in Minneapolis that resulted in the death of Renee Good. Mamdani revealed on The View that he supports “abolishing” the agency.
“What we see is an entity that has no interest in fulfilling its stated reason to exist,” he said. “We’re seeing a government agency that is supposed to be enforcing some kind of immigration law, but instead, what it’s doing is terrorizing people no matter their immigration status, no matter the facts of the case and I’m tired of waking up every day and seeing a new image of someone being dragged out of a car, dragged out of their home, dragged out of their life.”
Mamdani argued that there’s a way to care about immigration “with a sense of humanity,” but argued that ICE has not shown any “in a long, long time.”
The mayor also voiced his criticism against ICE and the Minneapolis shooting earlier this month, describing it as “a glimpse into what has been a year of cruelty.” In December, he outlined a series of ways that residents could legally resist federal officers targeting illegal immigrants.
Ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, Mamdani advised the Democratic Party to treat Generation Z voters with “seriousness.” He added that New York City needs to be a place where these voters can “aspire to dream.”
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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who backed Mamdani’s bid for mayor, has also advocated abolishing ICE, making her one of the few possible 2028 presidential candidates to hold this view. Pete Buttigieg, who served as transportation secretary under former President Joe Biden, has argued that ICE had a proper mandate on immigration enforcement, but is overstepping it under President Donald Trump’s leadership.
The Washington Examiner contacted Mamdani’s office for comment.