Protesters arrested at Broadview anti-ICE demonstration have been released
All of the people arrested during Friday’s protest outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility in Broadview have been released.
Brad Thomson, a spokesperson for the National Lawyers Guild, confirmed that 10 protesters were arrested, but he could not say whether any of them had been charged.
Protesters were arrested during Friday’s demonstration after they clashed with federal immigration agents who fired pepper balls and launched tear gas in an attempt to disperse the crowd.
"Our legal observers witnessed federal agents using indiscriminate violence against demonstrators," Thomson said. "Numerous people suffered physical injuries, including people who required treatment at the hospital."
ICE did not respond to a request for information on the arrests.
Representatives of the National Lawyers Guild attended Friday’s protest to offer legal support to demonstrators in need of representation.
The protest began about 6 a.m. and the crowd was quickly met with a strong show of force by ICE and officers with Customs and Border Patrol until the crowd dispersed about 10 p.m.
People gathered outside the facility to protest the Trump administration’s “Operation Midway Blitz” and the treatment of detainees inside the facility.
A small group of protesters gathered outside the facility Saturday afternoon to continue showing their support for immigrants.
There was little visible presence of ICE officers, other than those going in and out of the facility. Some vehicles carried detainees.
A few protesters who got too close to the facility's gated parking lot were asked to step back by agents inside.
Naval Station Great Lakes
Nearly 200 protesters also gathered Saturday near the Naval Station Great Lakes near North Chicago, which is being used as a staging area for federal agents as the Trump administration ramps up immigration arrests and threatens to send the National Guard to the city. Demonstrators held signs reading "Welcome the stranger" and "ICE out" and speakers spoke on behalf of immigrants in the Chicago area and across the country.
"We just want to be clear that what's happening impacts all of us, no matter our status, and that's why we're here," one speaker said.
The crowd chanted "Shame on ICE" and "No more deportations" before marching around the base. Speakers said calls to the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights hotline have remained high since ICE's presence in the Chicago area has become more visible and forceful.