A group of suburban mothers found themselves under arrest in Chicago after staging a peaceful protest outside an ICE facility.
The 14 women gathered, linking arms and sitting along the street in front of the Broadview immigration processing center on Friday, as reported by the Cook County Sheriff’s Office.
Ranging in age from 23 to 59, these women were charged with obstruction and disorderly conduct for conducting their sit-in outside the designated protest area.
“We are here to support our friends and neighbors who have been taken and frightened,” stated one of the mothers.
Protests at this facility have intensified, with local residents expressing their disapproval of how detainees are treated and the growing presence of ICE in the city.
These mothers, hailing from Chicago’s western suburbs, criticized the Department of Homeland Security’s actions, describing them as a “campaign of chaos” that is spreading fear throughout their communities.
They hoped to use their ‘privilege as white women’ to stand up for immigrants who could not do so for themselves.
‘Nothing is more important than the harm that is happening to people we have to get people’s attention to notice what’s actually going on,’ witness to Friday’s protests Meg Thomas-Cary told NBC Chicago.
‘Someone sitting in the road is not doing harm, people being apprehended is harmful.’
A group of 14 suburban moms were arrested in Chicago for staging a sit in
The women joined hands and sat in a circle outside of the Broadview processing facility
Members of the community seemed to support the moms’ actions. Some took to local Facebook groups to commend the women for their courage.
‘Thank you for continually showing up and using your voice. With you in spirit!,’ wrote one commenter.
‘Heroic! Good on them for peacefully dissenting,’ added another.
‘These women are so inspiring!,’ a third chimed in.
Their sit-in comes as a federal judge ordered DHS to improve the treatment and conditions for detainees at the Broadview center by last Friday.
The demand calls on the government to issue clean bedding, soap, towels, and adequate meals and water.
The group was arrested on charges of obstruction and disorderly conduct for staging the sit-in outside of a designated protest zone
Protestors ridiculed ICE for their treatment of immigrants and DHS for their overwhelming presence in Chicago
DHS has repeatedly denied any inhumane treatment within the processing facility.
‘Despite hoxes spread by criminal illegal aliens, the complicit media, and now an activist judge, the ICE Broadview Facility does NOT have subprime conditions,’ said Assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin in a statement.
‘All detainees are provided with 3 meals a day, water, and have access to phones to communicate with their family members and lawyers.
‘No one is denied access to proper medical care.’
On the same day, several church groups joined the moms for a prayer service. Some even attempted to deliver a letter that demanded access to the center in hopes of providing spiritual guidance.
‘Today, we are demanding that we have the opportunity to provide pastoral and spiritual care for those who are detained,’ Reverend Ciera Bates told the press.
The mom group was one of many that have been protesting ICE outside of the Broadview facility
Protesters have alleged inhumane treatment of detainees at the Broadview center
A caravan of 20 cars drove also by the facility that day, honking their horns and holding out signs that read ‘Hands Off Chicago.’
In early September, the Trump administration initiated operation ‘Midway Blitz’ which forcefully targets immigrants in the Chicago area.
The government increased ICE presence in the city and has boasted more than 3,000 arrests in just two months.
Federal agents have been been accused of aggressively grabbing people, deploying tear gas, and using excessive force, according to WGNTV.
DHS claimed the operation was to rid the city of ‘the worst of the worst’ criminals who entered the country illegally, though dissenters have claimed that many detainees had no criminal record at all.
