Some Michigan Democratic legislative leaders and advocacy groups are criticizing a post by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that appeared to target Sikh and South Asian immigrant truck drivers.
The controversial post on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter, came from the official account of DHS, the federal department that oversees immigration enforcement, on Sept. 9, but was deleted the following day.
The post, which the Detroit Free Press reviewed before it was deleted, looks like a movie poster, depicting a standoff between the fictional character in the Transformers movie, Optimus Prime, portrayed as working for the Department of Homeland Security, and a man with a stern expression who appears to be of South Asian or Indian
descent, has a beard, with his head wrapped in a bandana. The post reads in all-caps "Self-Deport Or Find Out," and beneath that, reads: "Transformers, America for Americans. Get Off Our Roads, You Don't Know How to Drive Mr. Singh." The name "Singh" is common among Sikhs and others in Indian, Hindu and Punjabi communities.
The post comes as the administration of President Donald Trump cracks down on immigrant truck drivers, accusing them of unsafe driving and taking away the jobs of American-born drivers. But critics of the post say it went too far, making racist generalizations about Sikhs, South Asians and Indian people. Indians are the largest immigrant group in Michigan, with 90,539 immigrants from India living in the state, according to 2024 Census data.
State Rep. Ranjeev Puri, D-Canton, the Minority Leader of the Michigan House of Representatives, who is Sikh and of Indian descent, called the post "vile."
"As a proud Sikh-American, my middle name is Singh," Puri said in a post on Facebook. "So are my sons'. It is not a punchline, it is a surname carried proudly by millions of Sikhs worldwide, generations of whom have served this nation, built businesses, and strengthened the fabric of our democracy. ... When an official government agency mocks people for their name, their faith, or how they look, that is not strength. It is xenophobia dressed up as public policy."
State Sen. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit, who's also of Asian descent, agreed with Puri, writing on Facebook: "Xenophobia is always unacceptable. Sikhs and South Asian Americans have contributed so much to our community and nation, and they deserve respect and dignity."
U.S. House Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Detroit, who has previously spoke out in support of immigrant truck drivers, said Thursday "this kind of hate against Sikhs is completely unacceptable."
DHS has faced criticism over the past year for other posts seen as being supportive of white nationalist ideas,the New York Times and other media outlets have reported.
In an email to the Free Press, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security called the criticisms "nonsensical drivel" and "faux outrage."
On Thursday, Sept. 10, California Gov. Gavin Newsom posted a screenshot of the deleted post, saying: "This is disgusting. Trump’s government is trafficking in racist propaganda targeting the Sikh community." In response, the departmentshared Newsom's post and included a video of a Sikh immigrant truck driver who got into an accident in 2025 in Florida that killed three people, writing: "Hey Gavin, YOU gave him his CDL (Commercial Driver's License) and then he killed three people with his tractor-trailer." A spokesman for DHS told the Free Press: "Harjinder Singh is an illegal alien from India who should never have been in our country. He made an illegal U-turn on a Florida highway in his tractor-trailer, causing a brutal wreck that killed three people in August 2025. He had been granted a CDL by California."
U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapa, D-Seattle, also slammed the post, calling it "incredibly racist" and "unacceptable." In addition to the criticisms from legislators, Sikh and Hindu groups such as the Sikh Coalition and Hindu American Foundation voiced concern Thursday about the post.
In March, Thanedar expressed concern at a House Homeland Security subcommittee hearing about Republican attacks against immigrant truck drivers. The hearing was held to hear concerns about undocumented immigrants receiving commercial driver's licenses to drive trucks, which Republicans say pose threats to highway safety.
"We are all highly dependent upon these drivers to move goods across the country, take our children to school, transport commuters, maintain and repair roads, and clear streets after the storm," Thanedar said of immigrant truck drivers at the hearing. "Reducing the number of commercial drivers will disrupt the economy and deepen the affordability crisis that already plagues America."
Thanedar, an immigrant from India who has faced racial attacks on social media, said "this subcommittee ... is holding yet another hearing on demonizing hardworking immigrants."
The post comes to weeks after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy held a press conference in Detroit on Aug. 31 blasting immigrant truck drivers who can't speak English.
"If you're here illegally and you can't speak the language … you don't deserve to be in a big rig on American roads and endangering citizens," Duffy said at a news conference in downtown Detroit.
Duffy went after truck driving schools, announcing an emergency executive shutdown of 110 driving schools over the licensing of non-English speaking drivers. Another 160 schools have been shut down, accused of not being properly certified to train drivers.
Contact Niraj Warikoo: nwarikoo@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan legislators slam DHS post targeting Sikh, South Asian drivers
