Nonetheless, spurred by Trump’s rhetoric, in 2017, Immigration and Customs Enforcement launched “Operation Matador” aimed to “target violent gang members and their associates.” According to the National Gang Center, gangs form in the most disenfranchised communities as another symptom of social and economic inequality that plagues communities of color. The result of Matador, according to the report, is increased surveillance on communities of color by local law enforcement and federal agencies. According to ProPublica, in 2017, “ICE arrested nearly four times more immigrants simply for being suspected of belonging to MS-13 than it did in 2016.”
via New Report Shows How ICE Uses ‘Gang Affiliation’ to Target Immigrant Communities
