Hollywood never fails to prove that fame doesn’t equal intelligence. The latest example comes from actress Ellen Barkin, who compared U.S. immigration enforcement to the Nazi regime — because apparently, reason and history don’t matter when there’s outrage to post on social media.
Too bad I’m watching Animal Kingdom, which she stars in — but I have to keep the remote handy to skip all the unnecessary sex scenes. The irony? She plays the leader of a violent criminal family in that show — stealing, lying, and killing — yet she wants to lecture the rest of us about morality and law enforcement. I can tolerate her stupidity — she’s getting killed off the show soon.
“What is the difference between ICE arresting and disappearing thousands of innocent people and the Gestapo herding millions of Jews into cattle cars bound for death camps?” — Ellen Barkin
What’s the difference? Let’s walk her through it — slowly.
ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) arrests individuals who violate U.S. immigration law — people who cross the border illegally, overstay visas, or commit crimes while in the country unlawfully.
The Gestapo, on the other hand, was the secret police of Nazi Germany, whose purpose was to exterminate people based on race, ancestry, and political beliefs. They were not enforcing law — they were carrying out mass murder.
Ellen calls them “innocent people.” But entering another country illegally is a crime — one that every other nation on Earth also enforces. There’s a legal immigration process for a reason. It protects citizens, ensures safety, and maintains order. ICE officers aren’t “disappearing” anyone — they’re identifying, detaining, and processing people who broke immigration law — and sending them back to their home countries.
Millions of legal immigrants follow the rules. Comparing lawful enforcement to genocide insults both them and the victims of the Holocaust.
The Jews in Nazi Germany were murdered because of who they were — their ancestry and bloodline. ICE arrests, by contrast, are based on actions — violating immigration laws, committing crimes, or skipping court appearances. No one is being killed, starved, or sent to death camps. They’re being processed and deported under existing law — laws passed by Congress, not dreamed up by ICE agents.
Hollywood treats Nazi comparisons like fiction, not history — a script they can twist to fit whatever narrative they’re selling. But every time someone like Ellen Barkin equates law enforcement with genocide, it cheapens history. The Holocaust was the most systematic act of mass murder in human history. Six million Jews were slaughtered — starved, gassed, burned. That horror deserves reverence, not political exploitation.
Ellen Barkin might think she’s making a brave moral statement. In reality, she’s proving how detached the Hollywood elite have become — living in gated mansions, lecturing the rest of America on borders, laws, and compassion while having none of the facts straight.
Maybe before comparing ICE to the Gestapo, she should open a history book. Or better yet — a dictionary.
Source: Quote found in John Nolte’s article, “Actress Ellen Barkin Can’t See Any Difference Between ICE and Nazis,” Breitbart News, November 10, 2025.