Fear grips Hawaii’s Filipino teaching community after ICE home raid

A federal immigration raid at a Maui residence housing Filipino teachers has heightened anxiety among educators and drawn sharp criticism from Hawaii lawmakers.

What went down: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents reportedly executed a federal search warrant at a multi-family residence in Kahului on May 6, detaining approximately 10 to 12 teachers and family members for roughly 45 minutes during their search. Among those detained were Filipino nationals working legally on J-1 visas. The operation is said to have targeted a Hispanic man who had previously lived at the address. The warrant, however, was shown to the landlord allegedly only after agents completed their search.

Lawmakers speak out: Sen. Brian Schatz first denounced the operation in a statement, characterizing it as “racial profiling and a shameful abuse of power” designed to create fear. Sen. Mazie Hirono also criticized the administration’s approach to immigration on social media, writing, “Rather than making our communities safer, Trump is focused solely on sowing chaos and instilling fear in vulnerable communities.”

ICE responds: ICE, for its part, defended the operation, saying Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents conduct themselves professionally and do not target specific ethnic or professional groups. “Making unsubstantiated comments to suggest otherwise places our agents and our communities at risk and erodes public faith in law enforcement for no reason,” it stated. “HSI will aggressively push back on false accusations to ensure the public has access to the truth and is informed on our mission to support public safety.”

The big picture: The home search was part of a broader four-day enforcement operation from May 5 to 8 that led to 50 arrests across Hawaii’s three main islands, targeting individuals with various immigration violations and criminal histories. Earlier this week, Filipino officials confirmed that no Filipino nationals were arrested in the Kahului raid and that all affected teachers remain safe.