Is Operation Wetback Coming Back?

By A. Govea

Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower

Many in our community fear that history is repeating itself — and some say it has already begun.

In 1954, under Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower, the federal government launched Operation Wetback, a mass‑deportation campaign targeting Mexican immigrants. The stated goal was simple and brutal: remove as many people as possible, as quickly as possible.

Published estimates vary widely — from 18,000, to over 100,000, and even up to one million deportations. The program ran from 1954 to 1955 and used military‑style tactics to round up anyone who looked or sounded “Mexican.” As with any operation driven by numbers, the mistakes were devastating.

U.S. citizens and children were swept up in the dragnet, sent to a country they had never known, unable to speak the language, and disconnected from their families. People were targeted for the color of their skin, the Spanish they spoke, or the industries they worked in. Many died after being abandoned in remote areas or deserts while trying to make their way back to the United States.

A few years ago, this level of government action would have seemed unthinkable. Sadly, that is not A few years ago, this level of government action would have seemed unthinkable. Sadly, that is no longer the case.

Now, with Texas’ SB4 law being allowed to take effect, the fear is growing. SB4 gives state and local law enforcement the power to arrest and deport people they suspect of being in the country illegally. Civil rights groups — including the ACLU and the Texas Civil Rights Project — called the ruling deeply disappointing and vowed to continue the fight.

One troubling provision makes it a state crime to reenter the U.S. after deportation, even for individuals who have a green card or federal permission to return. Critics warn that SB4 could turn the state’s legal system into an unconstitutional weapon, opening the door to harassment, racial profiling, and harm based solely on perceived immigration status.

It is no surprise that many Texans now fear a return to the enforcement tactics of Operation Wetback. If history is any guide, such policies lead to civil rights violations, family separations, and violence against people of color.

I pray that those responsible for enforcing Texas law will not interpret SB4 as open season on non‑white communities. Our state has lived through this before — and we cannot afford to repeat the darkest chapters of our past