Anti-ICE protestors gathered on the steps of the old Chatham County Courthouse with signs advocating “Get ICE out of Savannah.”
Just before the Chatham County Commissioners meeting, people assembled on the steps to protest. Organizers stated that the demonstration was planned prior to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid at the Hyundai Mega Site.
Protestors gather to speak out against the collaboration between the Chatham County Police Department and ICE.
“What we want to do is draw a distinction between complying and fully cooperating,” said Cameron Landon, Political Director for the College Democrats of America. “There is more. They are doing vastly, vastly more. They do not need to be participating in ride-alongs to actively point out where the immigrant communities are. They should be targeting whatever they are mandated to do, sure. Ride-alongs, we don’t support that.”
Alex Morales was one of the protestors at the rally and was present at the Hyundai Plant when ICE arrived.
“I mean, I was there, and when I used to go to school, they used to do lockdowns and the officers had to come and the dogs used to come,” Morales said. “I never had drugs on me, but you had a feeling of being scared anyways, even if you were not doing anything. When I heard that officer say, I need this plant to be shut down and people stopped working, I felt that emotion came back. I felt like he was talking directly to me, and I just felt like a little kid again.”
After the rally, protestors entered the County Commissioners meeting. However, when they tried to speak to officials, they were promptly escorted out by police.
Chairman Chester Ellis did comment about the ICE presents throughout Chatham County.
“All of the law enforcement in this county, whether we are talking about the sheriff’s department, whether we’re talking about the county department, the city’s department,” Ellis said. “We are mandated by law to assist any federal agencies that come in here. I don’t care whether it’s ICE, or whether it is the Secret Service. Whenever assistance is asked for, we are in compliance. That is a law.”
reached out to the Chatham County Police Department for comment however they stated: “Chairman Chester Ellis speaks for the Chatham County government and have nothing to add.”
