CBC Lite Sections News ICE nodding to far-right extremists in recruitment posts, experts say Jonathan Montpetit | CBC News | Posted: January 25, 2026 9:00 AM | Last Updated: 3 hours ago U.S. immigration enforcement agency memes look familiar to far-right groups Media | Who exactly is ICE trying to recruit? Caption: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been on a hiring spree, but some of its tactics are raising questions about who it’s really trying to recruit. CBC’s Jonathan Montpetit breaks down the disturbing parallels in the messaging, and why the danger goes beyond who might get hired. Open full embed in new tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. At first glance, there may not appear to be anything unusual about the social media posts that are part of the ongoing recruitment drive by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The posts, which encourage Americans to join ICE, use the same aggressively patriotic imagery that’s become a hallmark of the Trump administration’s online communications. But to observers of the far-right, and to members of the far-right themselves, there is something else that is recognizable in the language of the posts. "I would describe it as oddly very familiar as someone who has been looking at the white nationalist and neo-Nazi movement for nearly a decade now," said Hannah Gais, a senior research analyst with the Southern Poverty Law Centre, a non-profit that monitors right-wing extremism. "It's disturbing to see that coming from a government agency." Image | ICE-Call Center Caption: A person walks by the stage during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) hiring fair in Arlington, Texas, in August 2025. A recruitment drive starting last year added 12,000 new ICE officers, more than doubling the size of the force. (Julio Cortez/The Associated Press) (BUTTON) Load image Open image in new tab Gais is among several U.S. experts tracking a series of references in the ICE recruitment posts that, while obscure to most, seem to be winking to extremists. That’s raised the question: Who, exactly, ICE is trying to recruit? Invoking non-fiction book popular with neo-Nazis In the year since returning to power, U.S. President Donald Trump has overseen a dramatic expansion to ICE, the agency within the Department of Homeland Security responsible for enforcing immigration within the country. Trump has set a goal of deporting one million people per year. But as ICE has ramped up arrests, it has been repeatedly accused of racially profiling suspected immigrants and using excessive force in its operations. Under the "Big Beautiful Bill" passed last summer, ICE was given $8 billion US to hire thousands more agents. The ensuing recruitment drive included social media outreach. On Aug 11, 2025, ICE posted an image on its socials of Uncle Sam at a crossroads. It included the tag line "Which way, American man?" Embed | Twitter Open full embed in new tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. The post echoed a meme popular among right-wing influencers, who use the phrase "Which way, Western man?" to illustrate a choice between an image meant to represent liberal values and an image representing their own preferred option. But the phrase itself is taken from the title of a 700-page antisemetic nonfiction book written by William Gayley Simpson and published by a neo-Nazi press in the late 1970s. The book has long been a favourite among white supremacists. Using white supremacist anthem By itself, the language could have been chalked up to an unfortunate coincidence. But other troubling posts soon followed. In October, the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, posted an image of George Washington on horseback with the URL to the ICE recruitment page. This time the tag line read "America for Americans." It’s a slogan that was used in a xenophobic speech by President Theodore Rosevelt in 1916, before being picked up by the Klu Klux Klan, according to America for Americans: A History of Xenophobia in the United States by Harvard history professor Erika Lee. Embed | Twitter Open full embed in new tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. Not long after, DHS borrowed imagery from the popular video game Halo, writing "destroy the flood" atop an armed vehicle. In the world of the video game, the flood refers to a parasitic alien lifeform. It’s also reminiscent of the language far-right groups use to describe non-white immigrants, according to Gais. Most recently, in the aftermath of the killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis, ICE put out a recruitment post emblazoned with the line "We’ll have our home again." Embed | Other Open full embed in new tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. On Instagram the post first appeared with a clip from a song of the same name by the Pine Tree Riots. "It is a song only known in white nationalist circles," said Heidi Beirich, co-founder of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism. * What is ICE and how has it changed during Trump's 2nd term? * ICE officers can assert sweeping power to enter homes without a judge's warrant, internal memo says Since 2020, the song has been circulated on the messaging app Telegram almost exclusively by accounts linked to far-right extremists, according to analysis by Open Measures, a research firm that specializes in online extremism. With lyrics about replacement by foreigners, Beirich says the song is only popular in white nationalist spaces. "This is the kind of thing that I can't find to be a mistake," she said. Image | Immigration Enforcement Minnesota Caption: An ICE agent shoots pepper spray at a protester outside of the Bishop Whipple Federal Building, Monday, Jan. 12, in Minneapolis. The agency has been accused of racially profiling suspected immigrants and using excessive force. (Jen Golbeck/The Associated Press) (BUTTON) Load image Open image in new tab 'Message received,' say Proud Boys ICE says it received around 220,000 applications during its recruitment drive last year, and hired 12,000 new officers, more than doubling the size of its force. Beirich wonders how many of those applicants were drawn by the controversial social media posts. "The most dangerous part is that this is probably attracting white supremacists and other racial extremists to perhaps join the ranks of ICE. And that is a very toxic, very dangerous situation if it's happening," she said. Image | Texas ICE Hiring Fair Caption: People check in during an ICE hiring fair in Arlington, Texas, in August 2025. Far-right groups like the Proud Boys have boosted ICE's recruitment memes: 'If you know, you know.' (Julio Cortez/The Associated Press) (BUTTON) Load image Open image in new tab There have been no recent reports of extremists infiltrating the ranks of ICE. But far-right groups have been responding favourably to the social media recruitment campaign, recirculating the posts on their own social media channels. A Proud Boys chapter reposted the "We’ll have our home again" ad next to a picture of a literal dog whistle, adding the line "message received." Another chapter also reposted the ad, commenting "Hahah. If you know, you know." 'Attracting the wrong type' DHS did not respond to a request for comment from CBC News. But when asked by U.S.-based media about its social media posts, DHS has denied it was referring to white supremacist material. A DHS spokesperson told The Associated Press that the "We’ll Have Our Home Again" post was "a reference to 20-plus million illegal aliens invading the country." Image | APTOPIX Immigration Enforcement Minnesota Caption: Demonstrators protest outside the White House on Jan. 10 against the ICE agent who fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis. (Jose Luis Magana/The Associated Press) (BUTTON) Load image Open image in new tab Its outreach on social media is only one part of a vast recruitment strategy by ICE. The agency will spend $100 million US this year to target specific demographic groups, according to the Washington Post. That includes using geo-tagging technology to deliver recruitment ads to people who attend, among other things, UFC fights and gun shows. ICE has already spent millions running TV ads aimed at recruiting disgruntled law enforcement officers in sanctuary cities, which make public services available to undocumented immigrants. "In sanctuary cities, you’re ordered to stand down while dangerous illegals walk free," the ads say, adding "Join ICE and help us catch the worst of the worst." * Can ICE be restrained? * How Trump and Vance's accounts of Minneapolis ICE shooting differ from video evidence David Lapan, a government communications specialist who was a DHS spokesperson during the first Trump administration, said the department appears to be trying to recruit applicants with a particular mindset. Its messaging is appealing to people who “want to get rid of foreigners” and “bust some heads,” Lapan said. "I think ICE is headed in the wrong direction in that they're attracting the wrong type of individual to be involved in a very serious mission that they have," he said. ICE is slated to receive $30 billion by 2029 to fund its deportation efforts. More Stories Like This The related links below are generated automatically based on the story you’ve just read. Loading... CBC Lite is a low-bandwidth website. To see what's new, check out our release notes. For high quality images, media, comments, and other additional features visit the full version of this story. We and select advertising partners use trackers to collect some of your data in order to enhance your experience and to deliver personalized content and advertising. If you are not comfortable with the use of this information, please review your device and browser privacy settings before continuing your visit. Learn more about Online Tracking and Privacy Choices. * Corrections and Clarifications * Terms of Use * Reuse & Permission * Privacy * Accessibility * Contact a Newsroom * Submit Feedback * Lite Help Centre * Jobs * RSS CBC Lite version: 1.8.10. ©2026 CBC/Radio-Canada. All rights reserved.