Overview
- On New Year’s Eve, the Department of Homeland Security posted an image on X using Hiroshi Nagai’s artwork to illustrate a message about mass deportations.
- Text over the image read “America after 100 million deportations,” with a caption stating “The peace of a nation no longer besieged by the third world.”
- Nagai publicly said the image was used without his permission and asked what action he should take.
- In a statement to The Independent, DHS said it will continue using every tool to inform the public as agents work to Make America Safe Again, and no removal has been confirmed.
- The incident extends a 2025 pattern that drew complaints over DHS posts using a Thomas Kinkade painting and songs by Olivia Rodrigo and Sabrina Carpenter, with additional objections from artist Morgan Weistling.