NFL promises ‘no planned’ ICE operations at Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl

The chief security officer of the National Football League (NFL) has confirmed that there will be “no planned” ICE operations at this year’s Super Bowl, which takes place on Sunday, 8 February.

At a press conference on 3 February, Cathy L. Lanier, who heads up the NFL’s security operations, said that she is “confident” that Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials will not be present at this year’s game.

The event will take place at​​ Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, with Grammy award-winning Puerto Rican performer Bad Bunny set to take the stage as the show’s coveted halftime show headliner. 

“There are no planned ICE or immigration enforcement operations that are scheduled around the Super Bowl or any of the Super Bowl–related events,” Lanier told the press.

“Consistent with previous years, we’re supported by more than 35 federal, state, and local agencies. All these agencies are here to ensure that the Super Bowl and the surrounding community are safe while we carry out all the fun activities around the Super Bowl.”

She went on to stress again that there is “no planned ICE enforcement activities” at the event. “We are confident of that,” she added.

In October, during an appearance on The Benny Show, the US Department of Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem declared that ICE officials would be “all over” the Super Bowl, as part of Donald Trump’s push against illegal immigration in the country.

“There will be, because the Department of Homeland Security is responsible for keeping it safe,” Noem said of ICE presence at the Super Bowl.

“I have the responsibility for making sure that everybody [who] goes to the Super Bowl has the opportunity to enjoy it and to leave. And that’s what America is about.”

On stage at the Grammy Awards on Sunday (1 February), Bad Bunny spoke out against the increased presence of ICE in the US, following the shooting deaths of US citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti as they protested against ICE in Minneapolis.

The artist made history with his album DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, which became the first Spanish-language album to win Album of the Year.

“Before I say thanks to God, I’m gonna say ICE out,” he told the Grammy audience, to a rapturous response.

“We’re not savage, we’re not animals, we’re not aliens, we are humans, and we are Americans,” he continued.

On 3 February, advocacy group MoveOn Civic Action gathered outside of the NFL headquarters in New York City to urge the sporting league to prevent ICE officers from being present at Sunday’s big game.

The group delivered a petition to the organisation, which had amassed almost 200,000 signatures, calling on it to refuse the presence of ICE.

In a statement, MoveOn spokesperson Joel Payne said that the NFL’s confirmation of no immigration enforcement officers agents at the event was a reminder of “how important it is” for people to speak up against ICE.

“When we refuse to back down, we have the power to make a difference. Our members and NFL fans will be watching to ensure that the NFL follows through on this commitment. We will not stop until ICE is out of Minnesota and the dangerous unaccountable police force is pulled back from kidnapping our neighbors and terrorizing our communities,” Payne said.

On Wednesday (4 February), Trump said that hundreds of ICE agents had been pulled out of Minnesota following the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in the state’s biggest city, Minneapolis. 

Thousands of ICE officers will remain in the state though, with Trump’s border chief Tom Homan urging that the president will continue “to achieve mass deportations during this administration” and that “immigration enforcement actions will continue every day throughout this country”.

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