When government agencies begin tracking our words and habits, it doesn’t immediately feel like oppression, because according to sophomore Hersh Saxena, we are desensitized to the thought of being monitored on social media. But in the dystopian novel “Fahrenheit 451” that he read freshman year, he describes this exact kind of monitoring as how the novel — and its dystopian ideology — starts. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans to hire contractors who will research and locate individuals from cases and tips using social media platforms. However, the very idea that individuals could be flagged for showing “negative sentiment” towards ICE seems to inch us closer and closer to a dystopian reality.
At the moment, ICE has reported limited success with social media monitoring. As a result, at Williston, Vermont, and Santa Ana, California, 12 to 16 contractors will be hired at each location to form groups that consist of senior analysts, shift leads and researchers. Together, they will monitor listed individuals connected to their target, such as family members, coworkers or other associates, using certain law enforcement databases. Though the recruiting process has yet to begin, ICE plans to launch as early as May 2026.
Vaughn Villaverde, the Director of Advocacy at Asian Americans for Community Involvement, emphasized the potential impact of this system on communities. , he is disheartened by the targeted surveillance.
“This is an unprecedented attack on people’s privacy — on their civil liberties and on their right to free speech and free association,” Villaverde said. “We’ve gone from watching for threats to watching everyone who might someday be considered one. It reminds me of the McCarthy hearings, but turned digital. Back then, people were dragged in for what they said or who they knew. Now it’s what you post, who you follow, what you ‘like.’”…