Jeff Carey is a veteran reporter covering sports and architecture. He was the founding editor of the Minneapolis Mini Times, a local paper with a circulation of more than 500,000. He divides his time between the east and west coast.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA — In a sweeping and controversial move, President Donald Trump has called on federal agencies to reopen Angel Island—once dubbed the "Ellis Island of the West"—as a central processing and deportation hub for undocumented immigrants. The executive directive immediately sparked fierce backlash from civil rights groups, historians, and local leaders across California.
Located in San Francisco Bay, Angel Island served as an immigration station from 1910 to 1940, primarily processing—and often detaining—Asian immigrants under discriminatory laws like the Chinese Exclusion Act. Trump’s proposal to revive the site for immigration enforcement has dredged up painful memories and drawn comparisons to some of the darkest chapters in U.S. immigration history.
“We’re going to make Angel Island work for America again,” Trump said during his address. “It’s time we stop the chaos at the border, and start removing illegal aliens from our communities, quickly and effectively.”
According to sources close to Trump’s campaign, the plan involves retrofitting the island’s existing infrastructure with modern detention facilities and deploying federal immigration agents to process individuals slated for deportation. The order, while not yet officially enacted through congressional channels, would rely heavily on executive authority and collaboration with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
California Governor Gavin Newsom condemned the proposal in a statement Saturday, calling it “a grotesque resurrection of a site historically used to discriminate against immigrants.”
“Angel Island is a symbol of perseverance in the face of exclusion,” Newsom said. “Reopening it as a deportation camp dishonors that history and our values as a state.”
Historians and Asian American advocacy groups were quick to echo the sentiment. “This is not just policy—it’s political theater rooted in fear and xenophobia,” said Dr. Maya Chen, professor of Asian American Studies at UC Berkeley. “Angel Island is hallowed ground for many Asian American families. Turning it into a detention center reopens old wounds.”
While Trump’s proposal electrifies his base with promises of “law and order,” the plan faces serious logistical and legal challenges. Angel Island is a California State Park, and any federal use would require cooperation or eminent domain—both highly contested routes.
In addition, civil rights attorneys argue that using the island for mass detention could violate constitutional protections. “We will fight this in court with every tool available,” said Javier Morales of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project. “This administration seems determined to repeat history rather than learn from it.”
Jeff Carey is a veteran reporter covering sports and architecture. He was the founding editor of the Minneapolis Mini Times, a local paper with a circulation of more than 500,000. He divides his time between the east and west coast.
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