IndyCar driver Pato O’Ward and series officials were shocked by a social media post from the Department of Homeland Security that touts plans for an immigration detention center in Indiana dubbed “Speedway Slammer.” It includes a car with the same number as that of O’Ward, the only Mexican driver in the series.
“It caught a lot of people off guard. Definitely caught me off guard,” O’Ward said Wednesday. “I was just a little bit shocked at the coincidences of that and, you know, of what it means … I don’t think it made a lot of people proud, to say the least.”
The post on Tuesday included an AI-generated image of a IndyCar-style vehicle with O’Ward’s No 5 that has “ICE” stamped on it. In the image, the car is in front of a jail.
Indiana is home to Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and is where the IndyCar Series is based.
“We were unaware of plans to incorporate our imagery as part of yesterday’s announcement,” IndyCar said in a statement Wednesday. “Consistent with our approach to public policy and political issues, we are communicating our preference that our IP not be utilized moving forward in relation to this matter.”
A DHS spokesperson said it would not change the social media post. “An AI generated image of a car with ‘ICE’ on the side does not violate anyone’s intellectual property rights. Any suggestion to the contrary is absurd,” the spokesperson said in statement. “DHS will continue promoting the ‘Speedway Slammer’ as a comprehensive and collaborative approach to combatting illegal immigration.”
O’Ward said he didn’t see the post until a friend texted him about it. “I haven’t really read into it too much because I don’t think I want to,” he said.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in a separate post used “SpeedwaySlammer” when announcing the new partnership with the state of Indiana to expand detention space by 1,000 beds.
O’Ward, who was born in Monterrey, Mexico, is second in points in the IndyCar standings, though Alex Palou can clinch the title as early as this weekend in Portland.
