Amid Donald Trump's sweeping immigration crackdown in the United States, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has released a poster urging immigrants to consider ‘self-deportation’. However, the campaign has triggered a backlash online, with critics calling the poster ‘racist’ and ‘anti-Indian’. The poster, which appears to draw inspiration from the popular ‘Transformers’ movie franchise, carries the warning: “Self-deport or find out.” It also features the sub-text: “Get off our roads. You don't know how to drive, Mr Singh.” The reference to driving comes against the backdrop of several truck crashes in the US in which undocumented Indian nationals were identified as drivers. Following a series of such incidents, the US moved to tighten rules governing Commercial Driver's Licenses (CDLs) and paused certain work permits.
‘Racist’ and ‘anti-Indian’
The DHS poster has since sparked a heated debate online, with critics accusing the department of singling out Indians and potentially fuelling hostility towards the Indian-American community. The Hindu American Foundation condemned the campaign, accusing DHS of what it described as “anti-India profiling.” “Singhs” are Hindu, they are Sikhs, they are American and they drive. Racist, un-American, anti-Indian profiling/trolling by @DHSgov should shock our nation’s collective conscience," the foundation wrote in a statement on X.
The organisation also urged the Federal Bureau of Investigation to take note of the poster and open an investigation. It further called on Paramount Pictures, distributor of the Transformers franchise, to take notice of the campaign. Alec Nolan, an anchor with Fox7 News, also criticised the poster, saying it was “demeaning to anyone with the last name Singh.” "My grandpa’s name was Dan Singh. His father, Katha Singh, came to America from India decades ago to seek a better life. He became a raisin farmer in California. My grandpa eventually took over the family business and also worked as a truck driver. This post is racist and demeaning to anyone with the last name Singh," the anchor wrote on X.
The controversy comes at a time when the Trump administration is stepping up immigration enforcement and tightening scrutiny of foreign-born commercial truck drivers, making the DHS campaign particularly sensitive for Indian Americans.
See what US Homeland Security posted
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The Sikh Coalition wrote on X against the poster saying, “Twenty-five years after 9/11, Sikhs are ‘still’ being targeted and profiled for how we look. Millions of Sikhs in the United States have the last name Singh, which means lion. We remain fearless in identifying as Sikhs, even when our government portrays us as enemies.”
