By Adrian Bernal, Atlanta Branch and Border and Migration Justice Working Group member (with edits by Tina Shelton, BMJ member and WILPF US Program Chair)
In early February, a federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s effort to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for roughly 350,000 Haitians. Approximately 1.5 million Haitian immigrants live in the United States, with about half a million residing in Florida and significant communities in New York, Massachusetts, and New Jersey. In addition to Haitians, DHS Secretary Noem also rescinded TPS protections for approximately 600,000 Venezuelans, 60,000 individuals from Honduras, Nicaragua, and Nepal, and 160,000 Ukrainians.
Meanwhile, conditions in Haiti remain dire. The Transitional Presidential Council concluded its term without establishing a plan for presidential elections, instead transferring power to US-backed Prime Minister Alix Fils-Aimé. As recently as late January, several council members had attempted to oust Fils-Aimé. In response, Washington revoked the visas of four unidentified council members and a cabinet minister. The US government also deployed a warship along with two Coast Guard vessels to the waters near Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital.
In Brooklyn’s Little Haiti, residents are drawing striking parallels between ICE agents and the Tonton Macoutes—the notorious paramilitary enforcers of François “Papa Doc” Duvalier’s dictatorship. This US-supported force ruled through fear, uncertainty, and the ever-present threat of disappearance.
“Death Cards” Used as Fear Tactic Against Families of ICE Detainees
Echoing the grim legacy of the Tonton Macoutes, some ICE agents have reportedly adopted a macabre new practice. In Eagle County, Colorado, family members retrieving vehicles after relatives were detained by ICE reported discovering so-called “Death Cards” left behind by the agents.
These customized cards, which resemble the ace of spades, are printed with the words “ICE Denver Field Office,” along with the office’s address and phone number. This practice recalls a brutal tactic from the Vietnam War, when US troops left playing cards on Vietnamese corpses to claim credit for kills. The cards found in Eagle County appear to reference that chilling tradition.
Perhaps not coincidentally, in the card game Spades, the ace of spades is called the “trump card”—possibly a deliberate reference to President Trump.
Is the US Government Building Concentration Camps?
In another troubling development, the Department of Homeland Security claims to be expanding its mass detention capacity through a $55 billion Navy contract, ostensibly to fulfill President Trump’s agenda. Some critics argue these facilities are intended as detention centers for US dissidents.
According to Veterans for Peace, facilities capable of holding around 10,000 people each are planned for Texas, Georgia, and Mississippi. Smaller facilities, with capacities of roughly 1,500 people, are slated for 15 other states. Some communities and politicians are pushing back. Pennsylvania Governor Shapiro has highlighted the significant environmental and social impacts these warehouses have on small rural communities.
Most concerning is that some of these facilities are being outfitted with biohazard incinerators, raising troubling questions about whether the government intends to dispose of human remains at these sites. Rather than functioning as temporary holding centers, some fear they will become concentration camps for American dissidents.
Veteran journalist Thom Hartmann points out that the British first coined the term “concentration camp” during the Second Anglo-Boer War (1899–1902) to describe camps where rebellious civilians were detained and punished. The “bad elements of society” were gathered in a single location to prevent them from spreading resistance against the British Empire. The Germans later adopted the term in 1933, when Hitler established the first camps for communists, socialists, union leaders, and other political opponents—referring to this process as “protective custody.”
As Mark Twain once remarked, “History does not repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” When the warning signs are clear, it’s time to act. For further discussion, join the Border and Migration Justice Working Group of the Advancing Human Rights Committee. For more information, contact Adrian Bernal at adrian_bernal_2001@yahoo.com.
Sources
https://africasacountry.com/list/campaign/cam:p5r4f6
https://theintercept.com/2026/02/03/ice-death-cards-
ace-of-spades-colorado/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=The%20Intercept%20Newsletter
