Homeland Security post targeting Mr. Singh draws backlash from California officials, trucking leader, tell me about this news in (https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/homeland-security-post-targeting-mr-singh-draws-backlash-from-california-officials-trucking-leader/ar-AA2bZeqT?ocid=BingNewsVerp)

This news report centers on a major controversy surrounding an official social media post published by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as part of an enforcement campaign targeting commercial truck drivers and undocumented immigrants.The DHS Post The post, which was shared on social media and later removed following widespread outcry, featured an AI-generated, movie-poster-style image modeled after the Transformers franchise. It depicted the character Optimus Prime facing a Sikh man and included phrases such as “America for Americans,” “Self-deport or find out,” and “Get off our roads, you don’t know how to drive, Mr. Singh.”Backlash from California Leaders California Governor Gavin Newsom’s office condemned the graphic as “disgusting” and accused the federal government of using racist propaganda to smear an entire community and commercial workforce. California officials stressed that the state complies with federal regulations for commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) and criticized the federal agency for broad-brush stereotyping.Response from the Trucking Community Raman Dhillon, head of the North American Punjabi Trucking Association and a 30-year veteran of the industry, spoke out against the post. He noted that “Singh” is a standard name shared across the Sikh faith, meaning the post targeted an entire communityestimated to make up roughly 20% of the U.S. truck-driving workforcerather than addressing an individual case. Dhillon emphasized that while the industry strongly supports safety standards and getting unsafe drivers off the road, safety criteria should focus on testing and compliance rather than racial or cultural backgrounds. He also raised concerns that the rhetoric exposes drivers to hostility at loading docks and on the road.DHS Response and Background In defense of its campaign, DHS pointed to the specific case of Harjinder Singh, an undocumented commercial driver licensed in California who was charged after an illegal U-turn on the Florida Turnpike in 2025 led to a collision that killed three people. DHS blamed state authorities for issuing him a license and labeled criticisms of the graphic as “faux outrage,” asserting that its priority is road safety and enforcing immigration laws.Hasbro’s Statement Toy and entertainment company Hasbro, which owns the Transformers brand, also issued a statement clarifying that it never authorized DHS to use the Optimus Prime character for the campaign.