In a growing controversy, lawyers representing Venezuelan migrants detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or deported to one of El Salvador’s notorious mega-prisons are raising concerns that their clients are being wrongfully labeled as members of violent gangs due to seemingly innocent tattoos.
The issue came to light following a series of deportations by the Trump administration on March 15, which invoked the Alien Enemies Act (AEA) — a law dating back to 1789. The law, initially passed under President John Adams, allows the president to detain and deport immigrants during times of “declared war.” In this case, hundreds of Venezuelan migrants, including asylum seekers, were deported to El Salvador’s infamous prisons, where they are allegedly being wrongly accused of gang membership.
Many of these migrants were reportedly profiled based on their tattoos — symbols like roses, crowns, trains, and other motifs that have been associated with the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. This gang, identified by the Trump administration as a “foreign terrorist organization,” has been linked to violent crime throughout Latin America. In addition to Tren de Aragua, the Salvadoran gang Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) has also been associated with tattoo-based gang identification. However, some experts and lawyers argue that these tattoos do not necessarily correlate with gang membership in the same way they do for MS-13 members, whose tattoos often explicitly signal affiliation.
One such case involves J.G.G., a Venezuelan asylum seeker and professional tattoo artist who was detained while meeting with ICE officials regarding his asylum application. During the interview, J.G.G. explained that the tattoos on his body, which included an eye, a skull, and a rose, were not gang-related but were instead part of his personal artistic expression — and that they were intended to cover up a prior tattoo of a monkey that he no longer wished to display. In his court filing, J.G.G. declared under penalty of perjury that he had never been involved with Tren de Aragua or any criminal activity. Despite this, ICE labeled him a gang member simply based on his tattoos.
“I was detained solely because of my tattoos,” J.G.G. said in his declaration. He expressed fear of being returned to Venezuela, where he had already faced torture and detention due to his political views and his familial association with a known dissident.
The deportation of Venezuelan migrants has been controversial, with critics pointing out that many of those targeted have no criminal records in the U.S. and are simply seeking asylum from political persecution in their home country. Despite this, ICE claims that they use a variety of “investigative techniques” to ensure that individuals deported to El Salvador are, in fact, affiliated with criminal gangs. These techniques, according to ICE, go beyond tattoos, incorporating social media activity and alleged gang-related behavior, such as hand gestures.
A Growing Legal Battle
The issue has sparked a legal battle, with immigration lawyers questioning the validity of ICE’s methods and arguing that tattoos alone should not be used as evidence of gang affiliation. One such lawyer, Austin Thierry, has voiced concerns that ICE may be targeting migrants for tattoos that are culturally and personally significant but have no connection to gangs. For example, Thierry’s client, a Venezuelan migrant, reportedly had a crown tattoo that ICE interpreted as a gang identifier, despite the client’s claims that it had no such meaning.
The case has further raised alarms about the broader issue of racial and ethnic profiling, with migrants being unfairly targeted based on physical appearance or cultural symbols that are common in many Latin American communities.
The Legacy of the Alien Enemies Act
The invocation of the Alien Enemies Act has also drawn comparisons to the past, particularly to the actions of President Franklin D. Roosevelt during World War II, when the act was used to label Japanese, Italian, and German Americans as “aliens” during wartime. Many critics argue that the current application of the law against Venezuelan migrants is a dangerous precedent that could lead to further human rights abuses and violations of due process.
In light of these developments, advocates for migrant rights are calling for a more transparent and humane approach to immigration enforcement, one that respects the cultural and personal identities of migrants and does not equate tattoos with criminal behavior. As the legal battle continues, it is likely that the issue of tattoo-based profiling will be at the center of discussions around immigration reform and civil liberties.
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