Grassroots resistance of Trump’s ICE agents continues in Chicago: “They are not welcome”

The Trump administration launched ​“Operation Midway Blitz” on 19 September, unleashing federal immigration agents using military-style tactics on Chicago. While officials have said that they are targeting hardened criminals, the agents are abducting and detaining ordinary men, women and children, some of whom are US citizens, in their raids across the Windy City.

The brazen and violent tactics being practiced rounding up undocumented immigrants have prompted citizens to organize to help their neighbors that find themselves under siege.

The sound of whistles can be heard throughout Chicago

One of the grassroot efforts to push back against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents is the use of plastic whistles. Local activist and community groups have been handing out whistles across Chicago since the summer.

When people spot immigration agents in an area the shrill sound of the whistles can be heard to alert at risk undocumented immigrants to take cover or flee and at the same time attract US citizens to get their cameras out to record the agents activities.

The modest, low-cost tool to fight back against the militarized force has gained traction throughout the city and become a symbol of resistance. Baltazar Enriquez, president of Little Village Community Council, a community group in one of Chicago’s largest Latino neighborhoods that has been hit hard by the immigration crackdown, told Reuters that the initiative “grew like wildfire.”

Mobilizing and training citizens to monitor immigration agents’ activities

Another effort that has seen an explosion of growth is the formation of rapid-response teams like Protect Rogers Park. Like other groups around the Windy City, it organizes training sessions and mobilizes volunteers to guard schools and record encounters with federal agents.

Organizers say that it is crucial to have direct footage of immigration agents using excessive force and breaking the law which ICE denies is happening. These can help contradict the claims made by the agency, whose narrative of events often differ drastically from what is witnessed by people at the scene.

Matt Butz, who recently joined Protect Rogers Park because he felt like he “was going to burst” after seeing footage of ICE encounters on local news and social media, spoke to In These Times about what is motivating him to get involved. “I want the ICE agents to know they’re not welcome, I want them to have a hellish experience,” he explained.

He draws a clear distinction between the National Guard and ICE. While the former didn’t enlist thinking that they would be deployed against their fellow Americans, “ICE agents signed up for this — to terrorize people, to terrorize the community.”

“They are personally accountable,” he added. “They are the phalanx of this evil. I hope they’re made to feel ashamed about their participation in this chapter of American history.”

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