I Stand With Korean Immigrants, Not Trump
🗽A well informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny. Throughout history, Americans have faced corruption, injustice, and authoritarian overreach. And every time, we fought back.
34-time convicted felon Donald Trump may have been elected the President of the United States of America, but he is no leader. In fact, almost 80 percent of people who call America home did not vote for Trump (People Power United). He disgraces the United States daily by clawing to power not to serve the people but to serve himself. Trump has been emboldened by the laziest and most corrupt Republicans in Congress, men and women who have abdicated their sworn duty to represent the American people. Instead of working to secure our borders with smart policy, stop drug traffickers and smugglers, and fix labor shortages that cripple industries, Trump and Republicans have weaponized ICE and DHS against our communities—targeting especially Korean and Latino immigrants who have come here seeking freedom, dignity, and opportunity.
We witness cruelty as policy, lawlessness disguised as law, and fear wielded as a weapon.
A Betrayal at Hyundai
On September 4, 2025, ICE agents stormed Georgia's Hyundai EV battery site in the largest worksite raid in two decades. Four hundred seventy-five workers were detained—over 300 of them South Korean nationals who had come here to build the green energy infrastructure America desperately needs. Images of workers in handcuffs and ankle chains spread like wildfire, sparking outrage in South Korea and within Korean American communities across the United States.
The Associated Press reported bluntly: "Atlanta immigration attorney Charles Kuck, who represents four of the detained South Korean nationals, told The Associated Press on Monday that many were doing work that is authorized under the B-1 business visitor visa program. They had planned to be in the U.S. for just a couple of weeks and “never longer than 75 days,” he said." (AP News) South Korea has urged our government to guarantee that these skilled workers can return later, free from re-entry bans.
Yet Trump's DHS has doubled down, boasting of the raid as if humiliating allies and terrifying immigrants were a victory (AP News).
Even worse, a leaked ICE document revealed that at least one South Korean worker held had a valid visa but was still coerced into 'voluntary departure' (The Guardian). This shatters ICE's narrative that "every single one" of the 475 had broken the law. It was a lie. A targeted smear against workers who came to help build America's future.
Injustice at the Airport
The cruelty doesn't stop at construction sites. At San Francisco International Airport, Tae Heung "Will" Kim, a doctoral researcher and lawful U.S. permanent resident, was detained for over a week without due process. He was forced to sleep in chairs, fed scraps of airport food, and denied access to his lawyer.
The Daily Beast called it "inhumane," noting that CBP ignored its own 72-hour limit for airport detention and left Kim stranded in legal limbo (Daily Beast). His only offense? A sealed misdemeanor marijuana charge from fourteen years ago, long ago resolved. Yet ICE seized him and now holds him in Arizona, pursuing deportation proceedings against a man whose life and work are firmly rooted in America.
The Houston Chronicle underscored the injustice: "Kim is now in ICE custody in Florence, Arizona, facing removal proceedings" (Houston Chronicle). A green card holder, a researcher, a neighbor—and yet treated as disposable because Trump and his enablers see cruelty as political theater.
Trump's Agenda: Fear, Not Security
Make no mistake: these are not the actions of a leader committed to safety or prosperity. These are the acts of an incompetent leader, enabled by a cowardly Congress that would rather appease Trump's base than solve real problems.
While fentanyl pours across our borders, while human traffickers prey on the vulnerable, while industries from agriculture to tech scream for workers, Trump and his allies are obsessed with spectacle raids and humiliating immigrants who came here to contribute; they do not seek solutions—they seek scapegoats.
In Asian culture, shame carries a weight far beyond the individual. To be handcuffed at a worksite or held without due process in an airport is not only a personal humiliation but a deep wound to one's family and community. The concept of "losing face" means that these cruel spectacles—workers shackled in Georgia, a scholar forced to sleep in airport chairs—echo across oceans and generations. ICE and DHS know this, and their actions weaponize shame as a tool of control. But let us be clear: the shame is not on the Korean or Latino immigrants who came here to build and study. The shame belongs to Trump, to ICE, to DHS, and to the corrupt Republicans who turned cruelty into policy. That shame also falls on us—for over twenty years, too many surrendered our power instead of electing representatives who would champion human rights and dignity, create opportunity for all to thrive, and honor our responsibility by holding them accountable.
What Real Reform Looks Like
Immigration reform must be rooted in fairness, dignity, and accountability. That means:
A clear pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, Dreamers, and long-term residents.
Reducing visa backlogs and prioritizing family reunification.
Modernizing work visas to meet labor demands protects immigrant workers from exploitation and wage theft.
Expanding asylum protections and upholding refugee commitments, while banning family separation, indefinite detention, and overcrowded facilities.
Ending racial profiling, warrantless raids, and the militarization of ICE and DHS.
Ban face masks on DHS and ICE agents and require visible identification on all uniforms and vehicles.
Providing immigrants with English classes, workforce training, and civic participation programs so they can thrive in our communities.
Guaranteeing legal representation, streamlined courts, and due process—because justice cannot exist without it.
Additionally, we must commit to registering to vote, casting our ballots, and helping elect leaders committed to protecting liberty and justice for all—not just those with power, privilege, or a specific skin tone.
This is what proper border security and national integrity look like: smart, humane, just. Not the cruelty of shackles at Hyundai. Not the inhumanity of detaining a scholar in an airport chair.
Power to the People
I stand with Korean immigrants. I stand with Dreamers. I stand with asylum seekers, refugees, and every family that has come here in search of safety and opportunity. America is not Trump's to destroy. It belongs to all of us: immigrants and native—born people who believe in justice, freedom, and dignity.
Trump may be President, but we, the people, are the majority. And together, we will not allow his cruelty to define our future. We demand reform rooted in humanity, not hate. We require a system that works for the people—not one that punishes them.
No more raids. No more shackles. No more airport prisons. It's time for Congress to stop cowering and start governing.
Power to the people—and dignity for all immigrants.
Today's Calls to Action
Click here to sign the petition: Tell Congress: Unmask ICE Officers Now
Click here to send a letter calling on Congress to investigate ICE abuses, end mass raids, ban face masks on DHS and ICE agents, require visible identification on all uniforms and vehicles, and strengthen protections for Dreamers, refugees, and workers.
Call your Member of Congress at (202) 224-3121 and tell them:
Hello, my name is [Your Name], and I am a constituent from [Your City/Zip Code]. I’m calling to urge you to take action to protect immigrant communities and restore accountability at DHS and ICE. Specifically, I ask you to: Investigate ICE abuses and end mass raids that terrorize families. Ban face masks on DHS and ICE agents and require visible identification on all uniforms and vehicles. Strengthen protections for Dreamers, refugees, and workers who contribute so much to our country. We need humane, just immigration policies rooted in fairness and dignity—not cruelty and fear. Please make this a priority and speak out publicly in support of these reforms.
Share this post on social media to break the silence and highlight what's happening.
Donate to champions lifting immigrant voices—grassroots groups, advocacy organizations, and legal defense funds fighting for justice daily.
Special request to donate to MESE who is helping with rapid response in Georgia. Sign up to volunteer with MESE to help with legal clinics, translation, and community care in Georgia.
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Laurie Woodward Garcia (paid with hugs and kisses, not bought by special interests), People Power United
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I stand with immigrants & Blacks, whom Trump told their children, they couldn’t help being born as killers & criminals! It’s in their genes! He is incorrect!
Look at well educated Blacks. They’re smarter than the white colleagues whose relatives tried to keep slaves from learning how to read & write!
Those who fought beside my Dad in WWII, were not given the GI Bill, which was life changing for families!
In football, Blacks weren’t paid for concussions, as whites were, deemed to have smaller brains to begin with.
We have learned the truth!
Leave our Black & Brown brothers & sisters alone! Just let them live their lives without maniac racists intruding!
These people were not immigrants. They were temporary workers. I hope Hyundai pulls all of it's operations out of the US.