Tens of thousands march in Chicago against ICE raids

CHICAGO—Tens of thousands marched through downtown Chicago Tuesday to denounce the violent raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Los Angeles and the militaristic response to demonstrations by the Trump administration.

Over the course of a few hours, what started as a crowd of a few hundred at Federal Plaza grew into a sea of of people as protesters circled the Chicago Loop neighborhood.

“It’s so beautiful to see all of these people out today standing in solidarity with our immigrant community, because we know in Chicago that an injury to one is an injury to all of us,” said Nino Brown, an organizer with the Pilsen Rapid Response Network, who spoke to a crowd at Federal Plaza shortly before the march. “We’re not going back, we’re not turning back, and we’re rejecting the war that has been waged on our undocumented, working-class communities of color.”

“This is the long, old divide-and-conquer strategy, and it’s not working anymore,” Brown said of ICE raids against Latino and other communities. “That’s why they have to oppress us. That’s why they’re sending out the National Guard. That’s why there’s no more carrot, it’s just stick.”

Chicago Police did arrest some protesters, the exact number of which was not released as of Tuesday. Also, a vehicle drove through a crowd at high speed at Monroe Street and Wabash Avenue, narrowly missing protesters.

The march was held against the backdrop of President Donald Trump’s ICE raids and his dispatching of thousands of National Guardsmen and hundreds of U.S. Marines to L.A.—moves that many see as an attempt to manufacture a crisis.

The immigrant roundups and deployment of soldiers are opposed by California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. The recent L.A. protests were sparked after ICE agents, many masked and not identifying themselves, seized several immigrant workers. David Huerta, a union organizer and the president of SEIU California, was also arrested and accused of obstructing the work of federal agents after demonstrating against the raids.

Tuesday’s protest in Chicago was held just a week after activists here sought to disrupt the detainment of at least 10 people who were told to check in to an ICE monitoring program.

“I do not agree with the mobilization of the military against its own people,” said Esteban Burgoa, a veteran born in Mexico who’s lived in Chicago for decades. “Donald Trump is turning hardworking people into criminals by arresting them. These resources should be going to housing, medicine, schools.”

Burgoa’s sentiments were echoed by many who marched through the city yelling “Money for jobs and education, not for war and deportation,” among other chants.

“This goes beyond racism, this goes beyond xenophobia. This is anti-human, this is sociopathic,” said Diego Morales, chair of the 25th Ward Independent Political Organization.

Morales labeled the Trump administration as “lawless” and condemned the arrests of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a SMART union apprentice who was illegally deported to El Salvador, and Mahmoud Khalil, a pro-Palestinian student activist arrested by ICE agents in March.

Similar mass protests against the Trump administration have been scheduled in Chicago and other cities for June 14, the day Trump will stage a military parade to celebrate his birthday in Washington, D.C.

The “No Kings Day” protests are organized by a coalition of progressive group, including 50501 and Indivisible, and are in response to what organizers describe as the “increasing authoritarian excesses and corruption from Trump and his allies.”

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump said anyone who protests in D.C. on June 14 will be met with “very heavy force.”

Organizers of the No King’s Day effort had already announced that Washington is not one of the more than 1,900 cities and towns in which they plan protests. They have intentionally chosen not to organize a march in D.C. so as to avoid providing an opportunity for the troops massed in D.C. to be used against protesters by the president.

“For those people that want to protest, they’re going to be met with very big force,” Trump said. “And I haven’t even heard about a protest. But this is people who hate our country.”

To learn more about the upcoming No Kings Day protest in Chicago, click here.

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