February 13, 2026
Ice, ICE, maybe?
Google is stifling anti-ICE speech in the workplace
Meme takedowns, warnings, and a split crowd at Google
TLDR: Over 1,200 Google workers want the company to drop ICE contracts, but employees say anti-ICE posts are being removed and warned on. Comments split between “keep politics out of work” and “this proves Big Tech needs unions,” turning a workplace fight into a wider culture clash over power and speech.
Google’s office drama just went full soap opera: over 1,200 workers signed a petition at Googlers-Against-Ice.com urging the company to cut ties with ICE (the U.S. immigration agency), only to find their anti-ICE memes getting zapped on Google’s own internal platform. Staff say moderators handed out “final warnings” for posts labeled “personal political opinions,” creating a chill so cold even the memes froze. Meanwhile, leadership stays silent, and workers whisper about layoffs and retaliation. The comments section did what the comments do: explode. One camp is cheering the crackdown—“Good,” snapped one user—arguing no politics at work means fewer fights and less drama. Another camp fired back: unionize now, pointing out Google’s lack of organized labor and calling the censorship proof that Big Tech’s “we’re-all-in-this-together” vibe was always corporate theater. There were jokes, too: “Memegen moderated by the meme police,” “HR speedrunning the ‘final warning’ meta,” and “Googlers Against ICE sounds like a punk band.” Between calls for a town hall and memes about memes being banned, it’s culture war meets break room banter—and everyone’s refreshing to see what gets deleted next.
Key Points
- •Over 1,200 Google employees signed a petition urging the company to cut ties with ICE, acknowledge related violence, hold a town hall, and protect vulnerable workers.
- •Employees allege Google is suppressing internal criticism of ICE by removing posts on Memegen and issuing warnings, affecting an estimated 40 staff.
- •Google leadership has not acknowledged the petition and avoided addressing questions about ICE, CBP, or its support for those agencies.
- •Google provides cloud services for ICE and DHS and partners with Palantir, prompting employee concern over the company’s role with federal agencies.
- •Fear of retaliation and recent layoffs have created a chilling effect on employee speech and willingness to sign or discuss the petition.