Following a raid at a racetrack in southwest Louisiana, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Tuesday that it had arrested up to 80 individuals who were not authorized to be in the country.
Along with other state and federal organizations, such as the FBI and the U.S. Border Patrol, ICE reported that it conducted a raid on Monday at the Delta Downs Racetrack, Hotel, and Casino in Calcasieu Parish.
One racehorse industry group was incensed by the raid, which coincides with the Trump administration’s efforts to make more arrests.
ICE has been urged to strive for at least 3,000 arrests per day, up from roughly 650 per day during the first five months of Trump’s second term, by White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, who is the primary architect of Trump’s immigration policies.
Authorities had “received intelligence,” according to ICE, that companies running the racetrack’s stables used “unauthorized workers,” who were subsequently the target of the operation.
The agency claims that “at least two” of the dozens of employees arrested during the operation had previous criminal histories.
“These enforcement operations aim to disrupt illegal employment networks that threaten the integrity of our labor systems, put American jobs at risk and create pathways for exploitation within critical sectors of our economy,” Steven Stavinoha, U.S. Customs and Border Protection director of field operations in New Orleans stated.
Some leaders in the racing industry, however, were furious.
The National Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, which represents 29,000 thoroughbred racehorse owners and trainers, including at Delta Downs, has general counsel Peter Ecabert, who stated that it is unacceptable to come in and remove so many workers, leaving the horse racing operation stranded and without workers.
“If they (ICE) were willing to come in and try and work with us, we are willing to make sure things are done in an orderly way,” Ecabert added. “But what they have done here leaves everyone in a bad situation.”
Although the labor is demanding and it can be quite challenging to find people ready to do it, Ecabert stated that groomers and other stable personnel are crucial and enable horses to receive competent care around-the-clock.
Read Also: Studio City Freeway Crash Leaves 2 Dead, Including Off-Duty LA County Deputy
A representative for Boyd Gaming Corporation, the racetrack’s owner, David Strow, stated that “no Delta Downs team members were involved” and that the business “complies fully” with federal labor rules.
ICE has conducted more extensive raids throughout Louisiana in the last few weeks. The government reported arresting 15 laborers from Central America during a raid on a federally sponsored flood-reduction project in New Orleans on May 27.
Additionally, the FBI reported that during a raid on June 11, it detained ten Chinese nationals employed in Baton Rouge massage parlors.
The raids were deemed damaging and hypocritical by Rachel Taber, an organizer with the immigrant rights organization Unión Migrante, based in Louisiana.
“Our economy runs on immigrants,” Taber stated. “And when we let ourselves be divided by racial hatred, our economy for everyone suffers.”
