CHICAGO (WLS) — Earlier Monday, advocates for immigration rights gathered downtown to demonstrate against what they describe as the intimidation tactics employed by the Trump administration towards immigrants.
The intensification of immigration enforcement measures has spurred growing frustration and anger among immigrant supporters. They attribute the turmoil in Los Angeles to President Donald Trump’s actions.
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“This represents intentional cruelty. The message is, ‘You don’t belong here.’ However, we have a response: We’re staying put,” stated Illinois Congressman Jesús “Chuy” García. “This isn’t concerned with safety. It’s about control. Fear is their weapon, and their aim is silence.”
Supporters of immigrant rights joined with labor unions and elected officials at Chicago’s Daley Plaza on Monday to raise a voice of resistance against recent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainments in Chicago and Los Angeles.
“What is happening right now is about silencing voices,” SEIU President of Local 1 Genie Kastrup said. “It’s about dividing working people. It’s about dividing our communities against the haves and have nots, and it’s about abusing power.”
ICE has subpoenaed the city of Chicago to obtain personal information of applicants in the CityKey ID program, which is widely used by immigrants and includes their personal information.
“We call on the city to refuse to turn over to the federal government any information from our city key municipal ID program, since DHS clearly wants to use this information for immigration enforcement,” Palenque LSNA Rev. Juan Pablo Herrera said.
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This comes after ICE agents wearing masks detained a number of individuals who received messages to come in for a status update at an immigration office in Chicago’s South Loop last week.
“What we saw last week and over the weekend wasn’t lawful enforcement. It was a belligerent power grab,” García said.
In Los Angeles over the weekend, demonstrations against ICE activities turned chaotic.
The Trump administration is mobilizing 700 U.S. Marines to support National Guard troops in Los Angeles. It is a rare use of presidential power that has not been seen in this country in decades.
Amid ongoing protests in response to ICE raids and arrests in Los Angeles, 700 Marines in California have been ordered to assist, a U.S. official confirmed.
Trump on Monday said the decision is necessary to preserve law and order. California’s governor says federal assistance is not needed, accusing the president of trying to “manufacture a crisis.”
The mayor of Los Angeles said demonstrations have mostly been peaceful. However, recent video footage has shown objects being thrown at police and vehicles set on fire.
Activists in Chicago are blaming the Trump administration for the chaos that has ensued in Los Angeles.
“It’s plain and clear that Trump is escalating to advance his hateful agenda and resorting to tactics that place people from all communities, immigrant and non-immigrant alike, in danger,” said Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights Executive Director Lawrence Benito. “Their tactic to incite violence is clearly intentional, and it creates a moment that Trump will certainly exploit and act even more harm.”
Other immigrant advocates say while they do not condone the violent response in Los Angeles, they do not believe it hurts their cause in advocating for immigrants being treated justly.
“I think what hurts our cause is families being separated, children being torn apart from parents’ arms, and many times, single parents. And, you know, families are scrambling to figure out who’s going to take care of the children,” said Illinois Latino Agenda Co-Chair Marcela Rodriguez.
There are also concerns about the fallout from the recent ICE activity in Chicago.
READ MORE | Broadview protesters demand release of Chicago mother detained by ICE during routine check-in
There was no sign of ICE activity in Little Village on Monday, and people were out, going about their business, although perhaps it was not as busy as it might have been.
“We believe that they’re being done in very misleading way, very inhumane way, separating families, and it really is unnecessary, and unfortunately, fears are very heightened. Anxiety is very high as well in our communities,” Rodriguez said.
Advocates say the situation has created fear, with many wondering what and when ICE’s next move in Chicago might be.
“Given what they’ve done since day one, no, I don’t think this is the end. Since day one, they’ve created a lot of obstructions at every step of the process for folks trying to normalize their status,” said Beyond Legal Aid Sr. Staff Attorney A.J. Johnson Reyes.
These recent ICE actions come as Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is in Washington, D.C. prepping for his appearance on Thursday before a House committee investigating sanctuary states. He is one of three governors called to testify.
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