Martha Stewart has expressed her dismay over the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in her affluent suburban neighborhood of Bedford, New York. The 84-year-old lifestyle guru recently voiced her concerns, describing the situation as ‘extremely depressing.’
Stewart’s remarks come amidst the Trump administration’s intensified efforts to address immigration issues, a campaign that has evidently reached closer to her doorstep than she expected. Speaking to USA Today, she revealed, “We got a notice in my town of Bedford, New York, that ICE was in the schools. That’s extremely depressing.”
She painted a picture of her community, highlighting its serene and picturesque nature, “And this is a beautiful suburban town, an hour from New York City. It’s crazy,” she added, expressing disbelief at the intrusion.
The Bedford Central School District confirmed the sighting of ICE officers in the vicinity, as reported by The Daily Voice. This development has left many residents, including Stewart, uneasy about the implications of such surveillance.
Reflecting on the atmosphere of her community, Stewart remarked, “‘Big brother’ watching is not an easy way to live,” capturing the sentiment of a neighborhood adjusting to unexpected scrutiny.
‘”Big brother” watching is not an easy way to live,’ Stewart told the outlet.
The lifestyle expert admitted that she had been ‘an extremely optimistic person my entire life’ but recognized that she was ‘feeling a little bit down.’
‘I’m not going to get terribly political and criticize anybody individually, but America’s a beautiful place, and we have had such a beautiful life here,’ she said. ‘And we have to continue to have that.’
Martha Stewart, 84, admitted that she was ‘feeling a little bit down’ about the Trump administration’s ongoing immigration crackdown
Stewart said that ICE agents being spotted in her town of Bedford, New York, was ‘extremely depressing’
Bedford school district officials said measures were in place to ‘ensure that every step taken is in the best interest of our students’ well–being.’
‘We have heard and now confirmed reports that ICE was in Mount Kisco this morning looking for a specific individual,’ Rob Glass, the superintendent, wrote.
He added: ‘We know that news like this can be unsettling, and we want to address it with the utmost transparency and sensitivity.’
Stewart lives in a fancy farm house in Katonah, within the town of Bedford, that encompasses 153 acres.
She is said to have paid $15million for the land, and has claimed that there are seven houses on the property
Local authorities said the ICE operation caused ‘disruption’ when agents started a search around 8am.
‘ICE was searching for one individual, attempting to execute a federal judicial arrest warrant,’ Michael Cindrich, the Mount Kisco mayor, told The Examiner.
He said local police officers ‘did not assist or participate in the search,’ which ended roughly two hours later.
Join the debate
Is Martha Stewart out of touch for calling ICE raids in her posh suburb ‘extremely depressing’?
Local authorities said that an ICE operation ‘searching for one individual’ had caused ‘disruption’ (Photos of ICE agents)
Stewart broke her political silence last month when she commented on the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti
‘Unfortunately yesterday our federal government, the Department of Homeland Security, ICE, they conducted a law enforcement operation that disrupted families, school children and businesses,’ Cinrich added.
He said federal authorities were performing traffic stops on Lexington Avenue near Oakwood Cemetery.
The mayor denied that the agents had gone door–to–door or entered local businesses.
Stewart’s recent comments came after she first broke her political silence to comment on the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by US Customs and Border Protection agents on January 24.
Department of Homeland Security officials initially said Pretti, 37, approached the officers with a loaded 9mm semiautomatic handgun.
However, witness videos from the scene appeared to show Pretti holding his phone up to the agents – not a firearm.
He was captured filming agents with his device as they arrested a female protester, before suddenly being tackled to the ground.
Footage suggested that one officer took Pretti’s weapon from his waistband and walked away with it just moments before he was killed.
Pretti, 37, was shot dead by US Customs and Border Protection agents on January 24. His death sparked widespread reactions across the country, including from Stewart
‘My granddaughter wrote this to me yesterday,’ Stewart said last month. ‘She is 14 and sensitive to what is going on in our country as we all should be.’
The text read, ‘I’m not sure if it’s excusable to not be speaking up right now.’
Stewart said that she was distraught by the ongoing immigration crackdown across the country.
‘I am disheartened and sad each and every day that we cannot demonstrate our sympathy for the beleaguered, that we are told immigrants, which most of us are or descended from are unwelcome,’ she said.
Stewart added that she was upset ‘that we cannot show our frustration in peaceful demonstrations and that we can be attacked and even killed by federal troops.’
‘Things must have to change quickly and peacefully,’ she added.
