By: Ashmar Mandou
US Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents are ramping up their efforts in the Chicago area, once again, leaving many immigration advocates reeling over the safety and concerns of many immigrants in their communities.
“We learned that last week about 21 people were taken,” Marcella Rodriguez, executive director of local organization Enlace Chicago said at a press conference last Thursday on the city’s northwest side. “And this week alone, up to today, 17 people across our communities have been taken. We know that they are targeting areas around schools, even though summer programs are taking place.”
The increase in activity comes 10 months after the Trump Administration’s Chicago-area immigration enforcement campaign dubbed Operation Midway Blitz, which saw hundreds of people arrested or taken by federal agents. The increased activity also comes days after an ICE agent in Texas fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national who lived in the U.S. for decades. “They are not going after criminals,” attorney Berto Aguayo said during Thursday’s press conference. “The people that they are going after is in line with what happened back in September, back in October, where the vast majority of detainees did not have criminal records. And so that is still happening today. And yes, we’re seeing activity at courthouses.”
In response to the shooting and increased ICE activity across the Chicagoland area, Democratic Party of Illinois Chair Lisa Hernandez share a statement with the media. “Throughout my twenty-year career as a state legislator, I have stood with immigrant communities, and I know for certain: being an immigrant, being Brown, or being scared of ICE should not be a death sentence,” said Chair Hernandez. “‘Operation Midway Blitz’ never truly ended in Illinois, either. ICE is still patrolling our neighborhoods. They’re still targeting and detaining non-violent, valued community members.”
During increased activities, organizations are reminding immigrants of their rights and where to seek assistance. Organizers and immigration advocates urge neighbors to report immigration arrests or ICE sightings to the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights hotline. The network also connects immigrants to local organizations that provide services and support for families across the state. Call the Family Support Network at 1-855-435-7693. The group also sends out text alerts to notify neighbors of confirmed ICE activity in their area, verified or reported by local rapid response teams. To sign up for alerts and get more information, visit icirr.org/fsn
The Immigrant Legal Support Program offers workshops where noncitizens can speak with a legal representative who will provide hands-on support. The organization offers workshops for asylum-seekers and those interested in applying for citizenship or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, visit www.illinoisimmigrationinfo.org
