Actress and comedian Chelsea Handler is drawing criticism from conservatives after reviving calls to boycott Home Depot over the company’s alleged cooperation with law enforcement, accusing the home improvement giant of helping Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) identify and arrest illegal immigrants.
In a video that has resurfaced and is circulating widely on social media, Handler urged her followers to stop shopping at Home Depot, claiming the retailer’s use of license plate recognition technology could assist federal authorities in enforcing immigration law.
“If you’re as disgusted as I am by these ICE raids, then we need to start boycotting the companies that are enabling or profiting off these ICE raids,” Handler said in the Instagram video.
She specifically targeted Home Depot over its reported use of Flock Safety, a technology platform that utilizes cameras capable of capturing license plate information in parking lots. According to Handler, the data collected by the system could potentially be shared with law enforcement agencies.
“They can share that with whomever they want,” Handler claimed. “They can share that with the police. They can share that with ICE.”
She then added sarcastically, “They can share that with Kanye West if they want to.”
Handler argued that she opposes what she views as increased surveillance and claimed Home Depot is becoming an unsafe environment for workers and customers.
“So I am breaking up with Home Depot,” she declared. “I hope you will join me.”
Attempting to inject humor into her activism, Handler joked that she hoped the retailer would eventually “grow a pair” and publicly denounce ICE before quipping that, like some of her former relationships, the company might someday return to her life.
In the caption accompanying the video, Handler accused Home Depot of allowing federal immigration agents to “terrorize people” on its property.
As of now, Home Depot has not publicly responded to Handler’s allegations or her boycott campaign.
The controversy comes as Home Depot has increasingly found itself caught in the broader national debate over immigration enforcement. Some of the company’s parking lots have long served as gathering places for day laborers seeking work, making them locations where ICE agents have occasionally conducted enforcement operations.
According to reports, Homeland Security officials have identified such locations as areas where immigration enforcement efforts can be particularly effective because of the concentration of individuals seeking employment.
Conservatives argue that criticism of those operations misses a basic point: enforcing immigration law is the responsibility of federal authorities, not retailers. They also note that businesses should not be expected to interfere with lawful investigations conducted by government agencies.
Home Depot’s co-founder, billionaire businessman Ken Langone, has been one of President Donald Trump’s most outspoken supporters in the business community.
Last year, Langone praised the president’s leadership, saying he had “never been more excited about the future of America.”
“I am sold on Trump,” Langone said, adding that the president “has a good shot at going down in history as one of our best presidents ever.”
Langone acknowledged that he initially had concerns about tariffs but ultimately concluded that Trump’s economic instincts were producing positive results.
“When you made a mistake, admit it,” Langone said. “Give Trump credit. His instincts are good. Some of these things need to be fixed.”
Meanwhile, investors have reportedly monitored whether the administration’s intensified immigration enforcement could affect customer traffic or public perception of retailers such as Home Depot.
For many conservatives, however, Handler’s boycott campaign reflects a broader trend among Hollywood celebrities who increasingly direct their activism toward companies that cooperate with law enforcement. Supporters of ICE argue that businesses should not be criticized for complying with the law or for allowing federal agencies to carry out lawful immigration operations aimed at identifying individuals who are in the country illegally.
