Chicagoans Demand Mayor Rahm Emanuel to Release any Information About Poetntial Ice Raids in the City

Activists in Chicago are submitting a FOIA (Freedom of Information Request Act) to obtain information on pending ICE activity after a series of raids in California resulted in the detention of more than 150 people  

“We want our immigrant and undocumented communities to be alert and ready. Knowing in anticipation if there are raids planned in our city is one way that our communities can actively protect themselves. That is why we are asking that the Mayor give us any information he may have about potential raids in Chicago. If the Mayor of Oakland did it, Rahm Emanuel can do the same,” declared Arianna Salgado, organizer with OCAD. 

Over the last year, immigrant communities in so-called “Sanctuary” cities have been living under constant uncertainty and fear because the current federal administration has given  ICE free reign to detain and deport. From home raids to “Operation Mega”, the Trump administration is using ICE to target people in cities they consider sanctuary for immigrants and Chicago is not an exception. Although there is still work to be done for Chicago to truly be a Sanctuary city for all, the Mayor and City council should make public any information about imminent raids and allow our communities to protect themselves.

Organized Communities Against Deportations (OCAD) is an undocumented-led group that fights  deportations and criminalization of Black, Brown, and immigrant communities in Chicago and surrounding areas. We fight case by case, person by person, alongside families to create an environment for our communities to thrive, work, and organize with happiness and without fear. Through grassroots organizing, legal and policy work, civil disobedience, and cross-movement building we aim to challenge the institutions that target and dehumanize us and reclaim our collective power.  Find out more at www.organizedcommunities.org