September 15, 2026
Interactive data tool from Stop AAPI Hate allows users to explore the sharp increase in ICE actions against Asians & Pacific Islanders (A/PIs) by state, country of citizenship, age, gender
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Arrests of Asian immigrants reached a new high in July 2026; deportations increased 1,103% under Trump administration – far exceeding overall increase in deportations nationwide
NATIONWIDE — Stop AAPI Hate, a leading organization addressing anti-AAPI racism, today launched its new A/PI ICE Tracker (APIICETracker.org) to document and respond to the devastating impacts of the Trump administration’s mass deportation operation on Asian and Pacific Islander communities. This new public online data tool comes as ICE arrests of Asian immigrants recently hit their highest level of Trump’s second term in July 2026. The tracker allows users to analyze the impact of ICE actions on people from 35 A/PI countries of origin, as well as Hong Kong and Macau It pulls from publicly-available government data and is designed to give journalists, advocates, policymakers, and the general public a clearer picture of who is being directly impacted and the magnitude of that impact.
The tracker and accompanying data analysis by Stop AAPI Hate show an alarming surge in enforcement actions against Asian immigrants and an increase against Pacific Islander people in the U.S. from January 20, 2025 through August 6, 2026 under Trump, compared to an equivalent time period under the previous administration. Key findings include:
- ICE arrests of Asian people peaked in July 2026 at 1,950 arrests, the highest level recorded during Trump’s second term
- ICE actions against Asian immigrants have increased more steeply than the overall national increases across immigrants from all countries:
- Arrests of Asian immigrants increased by 436%, compared with a 219% increase overall.
- Detentions of Asian immigrants increased by 512%, compared with a 280% increase overall.
- Deportations of Asian immigrants increased by 1,103%, compared with a 356% increase overall.
- Among Asian immigrants, citizens of India, China, Vietnam, Uzbekistan, and Laos make up the largest shares of those arrested, detained, and deported.
- People from Central Asia (specifically Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan), from historical refugee communities (Laos, including Hmong people, as well as Bhutan, Cambodia, and Vietnam), and from Indonesia are disproportionately affected, when measured against their respective shares of the Asian noncitizen population in the U.S.
- California, Texas, and New York account for the largest overall shares of arrests of Asian immigrants.
- 25.2% of all ICE arrests of Asians have happened in CA, 12.6% in TX, and 9.4% in NY. This tracks with these states’ large shares of the Asian noncitizen immigrant population.
- Oklahoma, Indiana, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania show arrests markedly out of proportion with their small Asian noncitizen populations.
- OK’s share of Asian arrests was over 9x its Asian-born noncitizen population share, while IN, MN, and PA’s shares of Asian arrests were around 2x their Asian-born noncitizen population share.
- The disproportionately high levels of ICE activity in OK,IN, and PA may be linked to increased immigration enforcement targeting commercial truck drivers, while MN’s large share can be traced to ICE’s major raid in the Twin Cities that included targeting of refugee communities.
- Among Pacific Islanders, arrests increased by 25%, detentions by 34%, and deportations by 33%.
- Among PIs, citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia and the Marshall Islands make up the largest shares of those impacted (e.g. 47% and 29% of arrests, respectively).
- Arkansas has the highest share of PI ICE arrests in the U.S. (24.9%), with the majority of those arrested being Marshallese citizens. The number of arrests is disproportionately large relative to its share of the national PI noncitizen population (7.3%).
- The other top locations for PI arrests include Hawai’i (15.9% of PI arrests), Guam (13.9%), California (7.0%), and Iowa (4.7%).
“Asian communities are too often left out of national conversations about the impact of Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda – even as our data analysis shows that they are experiencing alarming increases in arrests, detentions, and deportations,” said Stephanie Chan, Director of Research at Stop AAPI Hate. “Our A/PI ICE Tracker helps make this crisis more visible and brings us one step closer to holding the federal government accountable for its hate-fueled mass deportation campaign.”
The A/PI ICE Tracker complements Stop AAPI Hate’s ongoing research into anti-AAPI hate in the U.S., which examines how anti-immigrant rhetoric and policies under the Trump administration have fueled hostility toward AAPI people more broadly, regardless of citizenship or immigration status.
“The tracker tells only part of the story. Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda doesn’t just stop at immigrants – it casts suspicion on anyone perceived to be foreign, including Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders who are U.S. citizens or whose families have been here for generations,” said Cynthia Choi, Co-Founder of Stop AAPI Hate and Co-Executive Director of Chinese for Affirmative Action. “Our research has documented a pattern: When political leaders scapegoat immigrants as threats, hate and violence follow against entire communities. Holding this administration accountable for its inhumane anti-immigrant agenda is about protecting all AAPIs and communities of color from the racism it is fomenting.”
“These stunning numbers are not anecdotal, but patterns of violence and cruelty,” said Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash, who attended the briefing.
“As the report shows, 25% of the arrests and detentions of Asian Americans were in my home state of California,” said Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif, another speaker at the briefing. “So, it’s very personal.”
To check out the A/PI ICE Tracker, visit APIICETracker.org. For additional data analysis and key findings regarding ICE actions against A/PI communities, click here.
