False Rumors of ICE Raids Stir Fears in Dallas as Nationwide Immigration Sweeps Kicked Off

Starla Patterson was eating breakfast Sunday morning and scrolling through Facebook when she read a post that warned of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid at a downtown Dallas hotel.Knowing that President Donald Trump had threatened ICE sweeps were set to start Sunday, Patterson immediately reshared the information that was originally posted by her friend, who works at a downtown hotel. “Dallas friends: ICE IS IN DOWNTOWN DALLAS. They are currently raiding the Sheraton please send undocumented friends and family somewhere safe until they are gone,” Patterson posted on her Facebook Sunday morning.Her post, which she later deleted, was wrong. ICE did not raid the hotel. On Monday, an associate at the Sheraton hotel said there was no ICE activity, and a general manager said he was not allowed to comment. A Sheraton corporate spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests for comment. But on a weekend when ICE raids were set to start across the country, nerves were on edge and social media posts like Patterson’s were shared dozens of times, leaving local immigration advocates with the task of debunking unconfirmed rumors of ICE raids.False reports of ICE activity are common, but the threats are that much more real to them and immigrants with Trump’s threats as the backdrop.   Continue reading...