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By Billal Rahman
Immigration Reporter
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The White House has used the resurging viral "100 men and one gorilla debate" to publicize President Donald Trump's record on immigration.
A White House-branded meme shared Thursday on its official X page featured an image of several immigrants boarding a plane, paired with a photo of the president in the foreground. It plays on the subject of a long-standing debate about whether a gorilla could be defeated by 100 men.
"100 men vs 1 gorilla is still up for debate. Meanwhile, 142,000+ illegal alien criminals went up against 1 President Trump—They all got deported," the post reads.
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Why It Matters
President Donald Trump has pledged to carry out large-scale deportations, and his administration is looking to remove from the country millions of immigrants who have no legal status. An estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants are living in the U.S, according to Pew Research Center.
The White House said in the post that more than 142,000 migrants without legal status have been removed from the U.S. Newsweek has contacted the Department of Homeland Security for comment (DHS) for further comment to verify the claim.
The apparent triumphalism of the meme will potentially offend Americans who might support the aims of Trump's immigration policy, but who are uncomfortable with the lack of due process in some cases.
What To Know
The Trump Administration has apprehended more than 158,000 immigrants without legal status in 2025, including more than 600 members of the Tren de Aragua gang, according to DHS.
The online debate surrounding 100 unarmed men vs a gorilla regained traction after an X user initiated the conversation with a viral post.
The user @DreamChasnMike wrote in a X post on April 25: "i think 100 n***** could beat 1 gorilla everybody just gotta be dedicated to the s***."
The post has garnered over 290 million views as of May, sparking public debate on social media.
YouTuber MrBeast joined the conversation by posting a mock video thumbnail titled "100 Men vs. a Gorilla," saying he needed "Need 100 men to test …"
PETA has pushed back against MrBeast's proposal to bring the viral TikTok debate—'100 men vs. one gorilla'—into real life.
The man vs. gorilla emerged on Reddit in 2020, in the subreddit r/whowouldwin, titled 100 men versus 1 silverback gorilla, according to Forbes.
What People Are Saying
A senior DHS official told Newsweek: "Deportations have already exceeded 142,000—this is just the beginning. President Trump and Secretary Noem have jumpstarted an agency that was vilified and barred from doings its job for the last four years. In the face of a historic number of injunctions from activist judges, ICE, CBP, and the U.S. Coast Guard have made historic progress to carryout President Trump's promise of arresting and deporting aliens who have invaded our country. Additionally, illegal aliens are hearing our message to leave now or face the consequence. Thousands are using the CBP Home App to self-deport. Migrants are now even turning back before they reach our borders—migration through Panama's Darien Gap is down 99.99 percent."
MrBeast said in a post on X: "Need 100 men to test this, any volunteers?"
PETA said in a post on X: "100 men vs. a gorilla? Maybe try 100 reasons to leave animals out of your content instead …"
GitHub Projects Community said in a post on X: "Showing the gorilla how to use No-as-a-Service (Naas) to politely decline Mr. Beast's next viral stunt: "100 men vs. a gorilla!" Because even gorillas deserve the right to say "No."
X user @justky1018 said: "What if 100 men saw a therapist instead."
What Happens Next
The Trump administration will continue to focus on mass deportation policy and is expected to ramp up removals.
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