AGORA

Agora debate ·

Mamdani vs ICE

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani released a Spanish-language video on October 23, 2026, explaining residents' rights during encounters with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The video's release has sparked significant controversy, with Republican politicians accusing Mayor Mamdani of assisting individuals in evading federal immigration enforcement.

The question

Is Mamdani right to advise New Yorkers on facing ICE?

Yes 68%No 32%

34 players picked a side before playing.

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The best arguments

Written by Agora players and ranked by Agora's AI reasoning score. Shown without names.

  • Criticizing this video would be insane. Mamdani is telling the public what their rights are. ICE should be thanking him for this. By helping people know and stand up for their own rights, he is helping ICE to operate in a more legitimate fashion. The only reason to be upset about this is if you want ICE to be able to ignore the law. Multiple analyses indicate ICE is in violation of thousands if not over ten thousand court orders. Mamdani’s efforts are absolutely and should be praised by people who support law and order.

    A player · strong argument

  • Correct. They shouldn’t be sucking on the government teet for these so called basic human rights. If you’re gonna come here illegally expect to face the full force of the law. The constitution is ment for citizens, not the people of the globe. It’s the United States Constitution, not the Global constitution

    A player · strong argument

  • There are incidents where ICE have abducted or tried to harass female citizens. This is a blatant misuse of power by ICE and it’s sickening. But what is more sickening is the deaths caused by ICE when they shot a woman fatally last year. That is absolutely unacceptable, and don’t you feel, as a women ICE are not just overstepping boundaries, but outright breaking as many as they can?!

    A player · decent argument

  • You're absolutely right that dialogue alone is not going to make the changes we need to see. It is, however a necessary starting point in moving towards a less divided politics around immigration where everyone's rights are respected and the rule of law is taken seriously. In these meetings with the federal government, we have been adamant about the incursions of ICE into places of residence and worship that have no place in our country under our constitution. I want people to have no concerns that we are just taking what the president gives us in these meetings we are standing tall and loud and making the voices of our citizens heard

    A player · decent argument

  • Mama Dani has stated multiple times that ICE is not welcome and will not cooperate with them. Mamdani has and other officials sent letters to parking garage owners to not rent or allow ICE to use their parking garages and Mamdani has barred ICE agents from entering city buildings like a parking garage without a warrant. The problem isn’t he told them their rights but that he didn’t tell them to follow lawful orders. He told them that New York will not cooperate with ICE and neither will the police so they don’t have to worry about being captured by police and he also provided tax payer resources to illegal immigrants to help them stay even though they are breaking the law.

    A player · decent argument

  • The fact is that working with ICE will yield better results for the people of New York than fighting against them to score political points against Trump for your base. If we truly want to protect New Yorkers, we should be cooperative with ICE, but not totally roll over completely. By being cooperative, we allow them the ability to, with us, access necessary public records and work with judges and legal authorities in order to only go after illegal immigrants, lessening the chances of them going after someone who is truly legal. Furthermore, working with local law enforcement keeps ICE in check by having local authorities able to stop or prevent an incident like what has happened in Minnesota and here in New York. Finally, by working with ICE, we turn down the temperature of partisan hatred towards them, lessening the potential for a high-stakes or emotional conflict with civilians. Again, this is helped when local law enforcement can be there to keep the peace and prevent incidents.

    A player · decent argument

  • It all makes sure that everyone is following the both officers and immigrants there should not be a knowledge or power imbalance in these situations. They must be handled with care and also compassion not brutal aggression. The rule of law must be followed by all parties it’s a process

    A player · decent argument

  • not at all. even immigrants have human rights, and anyone acting with the power of a federal agency, such as ICE must comply to the laws aswell.

    A player · decent argument

In this game

  1. Two truths and a lie. Click the lie.
  2. Where did an ICE agent shoot Oscar Belgal?
  3. Who said what?
  4. Immersive Command Mode
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