(CALIFORNIA) The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has launched a Christmas-themed deportation campaign titled “You’re going ho ho home,” rolling out in early December 2025 across social media and triggering fierce debate over how the United States 🇺🇸 treats migrants during the holiday season.
The campaign shows Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in full tactical gear but dressed up with festive props. In one widely shared image, an ICE agent wearing a Santa hat grips a semi-automatic rifle, framed by twinkling Christmas lights, wreaths, and wrapped presents. Another picture shows an agent holding a ballistic shield covered in lights with the words “Merry Christmas” written across the front. Even armored vehicles appear with holiday decorations, turning tools of enforcement into holiday displays.
Tone and Messaging of the Campaign
DHS is using this Santa Claus–style pun and colorful images to promote its mass deportation push under President Trump, presenting removal operations as something almost playful and lighthearted.
Supporters of hard-line enforcement praised the images as a strong message that immigration laws will be carried out, even during the holidays. But for many immigrants and their families, the Christmas-themed deportation campaign felt like a taunt at a time of year usually linked with family reunions and religious reflection.
“For many, the images do not bring joy but fear,” said community leaders and faith voices who responded to the campaign.
Reactions from California and Religious Leaders
Governor Gavin Newsom’s office in California responded by reposting one of the DHS images alongside a passage from the Bible, Matthew 25:35:
“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.”
The verse, which speaks about welcoming strangers, was used to point out the clash between the campaign’s Merry Christmas message and Christian teachings on mercy, especially toward migrants and people in need.
Religious leaders across several denominations echoed that view, arguing that no government should mix spiritual holidays with images of force in this way. They said the campaign’s attempt to put a cheerful face on deportation undercut what many churches preach in December about caring for those without homes or safety. For undocumented families, they warned, the sight of armed agents in Santa hats does not bring joy but fear.
National Context: Enforcement in 2025
The campaign is unfolding against a wider backdrop of stepped-up immigration enforcement in 2025 under the Trump administration, marked by:
- Repeated large-scale raids
- A strong focus on quick removals
- Public emphasis by administration officials on arrests of people with serious criminal records
Advocacy groups and local lawyers counter that many people swept up in operations have no violent history at all. According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, recent operations have included parents who have lived in the United States for years, hold steady jobs, and have U.S.-born children.
Social Media and Public Figures
On social media, DHS’s holiday images quickly went viral, with critics and supporters battling over every repost.
- Corey Lewandowski, former Trump campaign manager, reshared coverage of the effort without comment — widely read as a sign of support.
- Right-leaning commentators framed the campaign as seasonal humor that nonetheless sends a firm warning to people without legal status.
- Kim Kardashian, who has previously taken up criminal justice issues, publicly condemned ICE deportation tactics and stressed that immigrants “are part of the fabric of this country,” calling for more humane approaches. Her remarks drew a pointed response from DHS officials.
DHS Response and Government Framing
Tricia McLaughlin, the DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, pushed back on Kardashian’s criticism by highlighting ICE arrests of people with criminal convictions. McLaughlin argued that the campaign reflects a lawful effort to remove individuals the government has already ordered to leave, and said celebrities often ignore the public safety side of these cases.
Her response underscored the split between:
- Officials who frame immigration enforcement as law-and-order work, and
- Advocates who view it as a humanitarian crisis.
Impact on Mixed-Status Families and Communities
For many mixed-status families, the images land in a very personal way. Parents who lack status but have U.S. citizen children associate December with:
- School plays
- Church services
- Family dinners
Seeing armored trucks dressed up with lights and slogans like “You’re going ho ho home” sends a starkly different message: that deportation flights may take off even as others gather around Christmas trees. Community organizers report parents are now worried about simple outings — going to a mall or church service — for fear of being detained.
Questions About Government Messaging
The campaign raises questions about how far federal agencies can go in shaping public opinion through marketing. DHS in recent years has relied more on videos, graphics, and sharply worded slogans to explain its work. The official Department of Homeland Security website promotes enforcement priorities and claims a focus on security and rule of law.
- Official site: https://www.dhs.gov
Yet critics argue that turning deportation into a holiday joke moves beyond messaging into what they see as mockery of families who may face separation.
Legal and Moral Concerns
Immigration lawyers point out the gap between the campaign’s light tone and its real-world impact:
- Each removal order can mean a parent forced to leave children behind.
- A worker can lose a job overnight.
- A person can be returned to a country facing violence or poverty.
Faith leaders rejecting the campaign said the images ignore the moral weight of those decisions. They noted many churches spend Advent and Christmas raising funds and prayers for refugees and asylum seekers, not celebrating their return to danger.
Political Implications
Politically, the Christmas-themed deportation campaign fits with President Trump’s 2025 push to show the administration is serious about enforcing immigration laws after earlier legal and logistical setbacks at the border.
- The festive packaging may energize supporters who want tougher action.
- It risks deepening divides with states like California, which has passed laws limiting local cooperation with ICE.
California officials, immigrant rights groups, and several national faith-based organizations are now using the controversy to press for stronger protections for long-term residents without status, especially those with children enrolled in U.S. schools.
Although the campaign itself does not change legal rules or create new deportation powers, critics say it signals a federal willingness to celebrate enforcement during what many see as a season of mercy.
Bottom Line for Families
For families watching from living rooms, the meaning is simple: DHS holiday images do not show peaceful reunions, but officers ready to carry out removal orders — even as they wish the public a Merry Christmas.
DHS launched a Christmas-themed deportation campaign, “You’re going ho ho home,” in early December 2025, using festive images of ICE agents to publicize intensified removals under the Trump administration. The campaign prompted sharp backlash from California officials, religious leaders, and immigrant advocates who say the imagery terrorizes mixed-status families and mocks principles of mercy. DHS defends the messaging as enforcement communication targeting individuals with convictions. The controversy raises ethical, legal, and political questions about government messaging and its impact on communities.
