‘GRWM as an ICE agent’ videos are trending on Tiktok
“Get ready with me as an absolute piece-of-shit ICE agent,” a TikTok video posted by comedian Adam Macias begins. It’s a comedic skit, however, rather than a post from the social media account of an actual ICE agent. These types of videos have quickly racked up hundreds of thousands of views as the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency faces intense backlash after the shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis.
“I wake up screaming and shooting. Not because I’m scared, but because my sleep paralysis demon looks like someone’s tía,” Macias’s GRWM (get ready with me) skit begins. (Tía is Spanish for “aunt”). “I start the day off with a shower, but no matter how hard I try, I just can’t seem to get clean,” it continues.
After doing laundry and eating breakfast, the “ICE agent” proceeds to have his second shower of the day. “Time for some vocal warm-ups,” he says. “Self-defense, self-defense,” he yells repeatedly whilst staring himself down in the mirror.
“Time to go to work,” he continues. “My commute isn’t far because I’m literally about to go deport my neighbor.”
On Wednesday, January 7, ICE agent Jonathan Ross fatally shot Good in her car as she was protesting against the agency’s operations in the Twin Cities. The killing sparked widespread backlash and protests, both on- and offline, with thousands in attendance at the “ICE out of Minnesota” rally and march over the weekend.
“Wow, what a lovely, beautiful day to harass people who are at work,” another TikTok creator quips, in a video titled “How ICE agents wake up in the morning,” which has been viewed almost 3 million times.
“I hope I get to beat up a pregnant woman,” he says, referencing a recent incident where ICE agents detained a woman who was allegedly pregnant, kneeling on her and dragging her through the snow.
“Maybe today I’ll get a DUI with my children in the back seat,” he added, again referencing a real incident where an ICE agent was arrested for allegedly driving drunk while he had two young children in his vehicle.
“Nobody cared who I was until I put on the mask,” he concluded the video (a reference from The Dark Knight Rises). “Now they just hate me.”
Since July, there have been 13 recorded instances of ICE agents firing at or into civilian vehicles, a recent investigation by The Wall Street Journal found. In eight of those instances, civilians were shot, with two confirmed deaths. At least five were U.S. citizens.
Whether it’s in-person demonstrations or posting skits online, Americans aren’t afraid to make their feelings known. As one comment read: “This is actually an official ICE training video.”