In a statement delivered Saturday morning, President Donald Trump addressed his initiative to deploy the National Guard to various cities across the nation, including Chicago.
Earlier in the week, the president announced a temporary halt to his plans to station troops in Chicago. The troops, initially sent in October, faced legal opposition, which has since influenced the decision to hold off on their deployment.
Notably, just before the Christmas holiday, the U.S. Supreme Court intervened, blocking the National Guard’s presence on Chicago streets. This ruling was met with approval from Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, who hailed it as a victory for Illinois in standing up to the president’s directive.
While the National Guard may have retreated, federal immigration agents continue to operate in the Chicago region. In response, a group gathered in the west suburban area of St. Charles on Saturday, advocating for local legislation to prohibit these federal agencies from operating in the vicinity.
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In a show of peaceful protest, dozens of demonstrators once again filled the streets of suburban St. Charles. Their rallying cry was clear: they wanted Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) out of their city.
Fox Valley resident Sheri Miranda voiced the community’s sentiment, stating, “We don’t want ICE in our area. We don’t want to experience what’s happening under the Trump administration.”
Concerned residents from the Fox Valley resident gathered to show support for immigrants in the community being targeted.
“It’s wrong. It’s totally wrong,” St. Charles resident Bernie Kehoe said. “I mean, it’s against the Constitution. This country’s for everybody, not just for a certain amount of people.”
Saturday’s protest was organized by the grassroots group We Can Lead Change, and it came just days before large crowds are expected to attend the St. Charles City Council meeting on Monday, where the community will once again denounce what they call violent tactics by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol agents and demand a ban on the federal agencies.
“We do have immigrants in our community, and they serve us well, and they are our neighbors, and we feel like we need them to know we do support them in this community,” We Can Lead Change organizer Miki Powell said. “Some of them are scared.”
They include naturalized citizen and Fox Valley resident Marcelo Miranda, who immigrated to the United States from Mexico years ago.
“I’m pretty concerned, but at the same time I put my face up and keep going,” Miranda said.
The protesters want the council to pass an ordinance prohibiting federal immigration agents from using public property for their operations. That’s in addition to existing regulations like the Trust Act, which already limit local law enforcement’s cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
“I just hate what’s going on in our country,” Elgin resident Sharon Sutton said. “I hate to see what’s happening to people that I know and care about.”
Similar actions have been taken in other communities to curb federal immigration activities.
Rally organizers are encouraging people to frequent businesses either staffed by immigrants or owned by them.
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