CHICAGO (WLS) — The Southwest Side’s 26th Street area is back to normal after Sunday’s Mexican Independence Day parade.
The parade stepped off without any Immigration and Customs Enforcement disruptions, but federal agents were back in the neighborhood on Monday.
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A distressed Venezuelan mother with her two young children were seen sitting on the steps of a building in Little Village shortly after she claims that ICE apprehended her husband while they were inside their car at the intersection of 24th and Albany.
Footage she captured from inside the vehicle shows an ICE officer instructing the pair to unlock the car door. The woman insists that they shouldn’t open it, asserting their legality.
The woman shared the video with the Little Village Community Council, and Anita Clara witnessed the exchange from the sidewalk.
Clara explains that the officers demanded the man exit the vehicle, and when he refused, they began pounding on the car. Eventually, he left the car, leaving his wife and children in tears.
“He was declaring, ‘I’m legal. I have my legal status.’ Regardless, they took him without leaving any details for the mother,” stated Baltazar Enriquez, President of the Little Village Community Council.
Robert Centeno described witnessing law enforcement swiftly depart, abandoning the mother and her kids in a white car at the center of the junction. Centeno stopped to offer his assistance.
“As I approached, I noticed a woman in the passenger seat crying, accompanied by two children also in tears,” Centeno recounted. “They had prevented any back or front exit. She mentioned that they were banging on the car, seemingly intending to cause damage. The children were crying, so he just got out.”
Centeno says the mother told him that the agents did not present a warrant. She says her husband has a work visa and no criminal record.
Enriquez says the council is trying to help get legal representation for those who have been detained, but the numbers are growing.
“We are going to see what else we are going to do for mom, see if they need any clothing, assistance,” Enriquez said.
A short time later, just a few few blocks away, ICE agents stopped a Venezuelan man, taking him into custody, as well. Noemi Rivera witnessed it all as they brought him to the car in handcuffs.
In Spanish, Rivera said, “I got very scared and nervous because I saw everything and I shot the video.”
ABC7 made several unsuccessful attempts to contact ICE for comment on Monday night.
The ICE arrests come just one day after the Mexican Independence Day parade.
While crowds were not as large compared to previous years, Baltazar said the event was a success.
Baltazar’s organization passed out “Know your rights” fliers and whistles. The whistle campaign is to blow one when ICE agents are spotted. Baltazar says it successfully worked last week when ICE came to get two people in a car.
“We arrived, we saw them, and we started blowing the whistle. As soon as we started blowing the whistle, they turned on their cars and they left,” Baltazar said.
Meanwhile, some Pilsen neighbors are celebrating El Grito on Monday night. It is supposed to be a reminder for Mexican people about their right for freedom, dignity, and respect. That is difficult for some right now.
“Even people that have legal status, we’re also fearful,” Enriquez said.
The family of the man detained at 24th and Albany is working with an attorney to determine where he is being held and whether he can be released on bond.
Immigration and neighborhood groups remain vigilant and encourage people who witness ICE to call their organizations immediately.
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