ICE Raids Loom Large as Mamdani Prepares for Trump Showdown

Mayor-elect faces defining test on whether NYPD will protect immigrant communities from federal agents

The Canal Street Warning

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents descended on Canal Street in Manhattan last month in a raid that sent shockwaves through New York’s immigrant communities. The incident, which saw agents attempting to detain individuals without warrants, mobilized protesters who surrounded ICE vehicles and demanded the release of those being detained. For many observers, it represented a preview of what’s coming under a second Trump administration.

According to Hell Gate, the community response at Canal Street demonstrated both the potential for resistance and the vulnerability of immigrant New Yorkers. Regular people mobbed ICE when agents came to their neighborhood, but without institutional support from city government, such resistance can only go so far.

Mamdani’s ICE Promise

During his campaign, Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani vowed to end collaboration with ICE and protect New York’s sanctuary city status. At the second mayoral debate, he declared his commitment to preventing ICE and National Guard troops from operating freely in New York. However, he notably framed that collaboration as “between City Hall and the federal government,” leaving out existing collaboration between the NYPD and federal immigration authorities.

This distinction matters enormously. As investigative journalist Spencer Ackerman documents, the NYPD under Commissioner Jessica Tisch–whom Mamdani plans to retain–has a documented record of ICE cooperation that circumvents sanctuary city laws. The question is whether Mamdani will demand Tisch end these practices or allow them to continue.

The Leqaa Kordia Case

The case of Leqaa Kordia illustrates how NYPD-ICE collaboration functions in practice. Kordia, a 32-year-old Palestinian woman from New Jersey, participated in Columbia University’s Gaza solidarity encampment in spring 2024. The NYPD arrested Kordia during the encampment clearing and soon dropped charges–which should have resulted in her arrest record being sealed under New York law.

However, months after Tisch became commissioner, ICE sent a request for assistance to the NYPD claiming a “money laundering” investigation of Kordia. The NYPD gave ICE Kordia’s sealed arrest record, and ICE has held her at its Prairieland, Texas detention facility since March 13. The “money laundering” investigation was ICE’s attempt to misrepresent Kordia wiring cash to relatives in the West Bank–magic words that allowed ICE to obtain NYPD cooperation despite sanctuary laws.

When confronted about this at a May press conference, Tisch defended the decision, calling it “fairly standard.” Meghna Philip, director of special litigation at the Legal Aid Society, warned that it raised “potential for wide-scale violations of the sanctuary laws by the NYPD.”

The Task Force Loophole

Beyond individual cases, structural collaboration occurs through federal-local law enforcement task forces. The New York Joint Terrorism Task Force unites the NYPD, FBI, and ICE, among other agencies. These partnerships allow sanctuary city police to assist immigration agencies they’re not supposed to work with, using the cover of criminal investigations.

According to The City and Documented reporting, the NYPD was involved in the arrest of two young men on gun charges that were eventually dropped, but who were sent to CECOT, El Salvador’s notorious torture prison. Task force participation enabled this result despite New York’s sanctuary city laws.

The Cyclist Summons Strategy

More subtle mechanisms for collaboration also exist. This spring, the NYPD started issuing criminal summonses for cyclists’ traffic violations like not wearing helmets–offenses that previously resulted in tickets. The change put the delivery workforce, many of whom are undocumented, in ICE’s crosshairs by creating criminal rather than civil encounters with law enforcement.

“We know in this current political context that contact with the NYPD is a premise for the deportation pipeline,” City Councilwoman Alexa Avilés told Streetsblog. By July, cyclists’ criminal summonses spiked to 6,000, up from only 561 the quarter before Tisch’s policy change. According to Gothamist, this represented a tenfold increase.

Trump’s Threats and Promises

President Trump has foreshadowed sending ICE and Customs and Border Protection swarming through New York since Mamdani’s primary victory. During the campaign, Trump threatened to deploy federal troops to the city if Mamdani was elected and suggested withholding federal funding for sanctuary city policies.

While Trump has since indicated willingness to meet with Mamdani and “work something out,” his administration’s actions speak louder than conciliatory words. According to New York Times reporting, the administration is planning significant immigration enforcement operations in major cities, with New York at the top of the list.

The Security Clearance Leverage

Trump could use Mamdani’s security clearance–required for the mayor to receive classified intelligence briefings–as leverage to demand cooperation on immigration enforcement. While denying the clearance would be unprecedented and potentially dangerous given New York’s status as a terror target, the Trump administration has shown willingness to use security clearances for political purposes.

This creates a potential crisis scenario: Mamdani wants to protect immigrants, but Trump could threaten to cut off intelligence sharing about terrorism threats if the city doesn’t cooperate with ICE. How Mamdani navigates this dilemma will define his relationship with the immigrant communities central to his coalition.

What Protection Could Look Like

Some activists and legal advocates argue the NYPD should do more than simply “stand aside” when ICE raids occur. They want active protection–police physically intervening to prevent ICE from detaining New Yorkers without proper warrants, which ICE frequently operates without.

As Ackerman poses the question: Would immigrant communities be satisfied by the NYPD remaining on the sidelines as ICE comes to grab terrified, unarmed people? Or would they want the NYPD commissioner to order a direct standoff between ICE agents and city cops if that’s what it takes to stop ICE from rounding up New Yorkers?

This is a radical proposition that would likely trigger a constitutional crisis. Federal immigration enforcement is constitutionally a federal responsibility, and local police actively obstructing federal agents could lead to legal consequences for the city and potentially criminal charges for officers. Yet some argue that sanctuary city status means nothing if it doesn’t include physical protection when immigrants are threatened.

The Legal Framework

New York’s sanctuary laws, established in 2017 and strengthened in 2020, bar city cooperation with federal immigration enforcement for civil immigration matters. However, the laws include exceptions for criminal investigations and allow information sharing through task forces. As documented by Brennan Center for Justice, these loopholes have been exploited repeatedly.

Stronger enforcement of existing sanctuary laws–closing loopholes, ending task force participation where ICE is involved, and prohibiting any information sharing that could facilitate deportations–would significantly protect immigrants without requiring illegal obstruction of federal agents. The question is whether Mamdani will demand Tisch implement such policies.

The Community Response

Immigrant communities aren’t waiting passively for city protection. Organizations are conducting “know your rights” training, establishing rapid response networks to document ICE raids, and creating community defense strategies. According to Make the Road New York, one of the city’s leading immigrant rights groups, community members are preparing to respond as they did at Canal Street.

However, grassroots resistance can only accomplish so much. Without institutional support from city government, immigrants remain vulnerable to a federal agency with vast resources and legal authority. This is why Mamdani’s decisions about NYPD policy matter so much–they will determine whether New York’s sanctuary city status is meaningful or merely symbolic.

The Public Safety Argument

NYPD and immigration enforcement supporters argue that cooperation on criminal matters serves public safety. If an undocumented person commits a serious crime, they contend, ICE should be able to take them into custody for deportation after the criminal case concludes. This argument has some force when applied to violent offenses.

However, critics point out that ICE cooperation chills crime reporting in immigrant communities. If people fear calling police will lead to deportation–either their own or family members’–they won’t report crimes, making communities less safe. Research from Immigrant Defense Project documents this chilling effect in jurisdictions with ICE cooperation.

The Political Tightrope

Mamdani faces competing pressures. Immigrant communities and progressive activists expect him to provide meaningful protection. Law enforcement traditionalists and moderate Democrats want cooperation with federal authorities on criminal matters. Finding a middle ground that satisfies everyone may be impossible.

His decision to retain Commissioner Tisch suggests he’s prioritizing the latter constituency, at least initially. Whether he can later demand policy changes from Tisch, or whether retaining her means accepting her approach to ICE cooperation, remains to be seen.

The Defining Question

When ICE raids intensify in New York–and all signs point to that happening in 2025–Mayor Mamdani will face his defining test. Will the NYPD protect New Yorkers from federal immigration agents, or will it facilitate their work? Will sanctuary city status mean something, or will it prove to be empty rhetoric?

The answer to these questions will determine not only Mamdani’s legacy but also whether New York remains a true sanctuary for the millions of immigrants who call it home. As one immigrant rights organizer put it: “We elected Zohran to protect us. Now we’ll see if he actually does it.”