While Lubbock’s local news continues its proud tradition of strategic silence, the rest of Texas is watching Immigration and Customs Enforcement ramp up arrests at a pace that would make a traffic blitz look quaint. According to The Texas Tribune, daily ICE arrests in Texas have more than doubled under Trump’s second term, jumping from about 85 a day to 176. That’s not a “border issue” anymore—that’s an everyday, everywhere issue.
The escalation hasn’t been subtle. ICE agents have been involved in fatal and near-fatal shootings in Minneapolis and Portland, sparking protests nationwide—including in Texas cities like Houston, Austin, and Dallas. Meanwhile, Trump is out here claiming mass deportations will magically lower housing costs, raise wages, and reduce crime. Because if there’s one thing economists agree on, it’s vibes-based policy math.
Operationally, ICE has shifted from border enforcement to interior arrests—raids at construction sites, mass street operations, and a heavy reliance on local jails. Texas now leads the nation in ICE detainers, with Harris County Jail topping the list. Translation: get arrested for anything, and ICE may already be waiting in the lobby.
And yes, local police are in on it. Thanks to state mandates and the 287(g) program, sheriffs across Texas are required to cooperate with ICE. Even cities that once claimed a little independence—Austin, San Antonio—are now legally obligated to assist. Sensitive locations like churches, schools, and hospitals? Those protections were quietly scrapped. Hope you like learning your rights while standing in a hallway with armed agents.
Which brings us back to Lubbock. While state media documents raids, protests, shootings, and legal changes, our local coverage remains blissfully mute—despite weekly ICE arrests happening right here, sometimes involving Mexican Mennonites. You know, the kind of detail that might complicate the tidy narrative of who immigration enforcement is supposed to affect.
So is Lubbock unaware, uninterested, or just really committed to the “if we don’t report it, it’s not happening” school of journalism?
If you’re noticing an uptick in ICE activity in your own neighborhood, there’s a grassroots tool that lets people report sightings anonymously at iceout.org, since local coverage clearly isn’t interested.
https://www.texastribune.org/2026/01/19/texas-immigration-ice-arrests-raids-police/