The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), led by Kristi Noem, has been accused of sharing nativist propaganda on social media through artwork as it pursues mass deportations. Throughout July, the DHS X account posted paintings depicting a nostalgic, white-centric vision of America, including John Gast's 1872 'American Progress' and Morgan Weistling's 'A Prayer for a New Life'. Experts and the artists' estates have condemned the use of these works without permission, calling it a perversion of their original intent.
The Kinkade Family Foundation said Thomas Kinkade's 'Morning Pledge' was used without consent to 'promote division and xenophobia'. Kinkade, who died in 2012, viewed his art as a way to imagine a world where 'warmth, safety, and belonging are human rights for all'. The foundation noted he raised millions for the poor and provided art kits to farmworker communities, adding that using his work for exclusion 'betrays the very heart of what he stood for'.
Historian Richard White, professor emeritus at Stanford, said 'American Progress' depicts a mythic narrative, not history, as it ignores violence against Native Americans and Black people. He compared DHS's current immigration raids in Los Angeles to Nazi Gestapo tactics. Journalist Spencer Ackerman argued that the term 'homeland' itself has crypto-right wing roots from the post-9/11 era, and that DHS's imagery reflects long-standing nativist currents.
DHS defended the posts, with Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin stating the agency 'honors artwork that celebrates America's heritage and history' and is 'unapologetically proud of American history'. However, critics say the propaganda masks the harsh reality of deportation operations, which have involved masked agents and military troops conducting dragnet-style operations in cities like Los Angeles.
