Chicago groups protest Trump over immigration policies

Chicago groups protest Trump over immigration policies

Chanting "immigrants are welcome here," groups rallied at Daley Plaza, along with multiple unions, denouncing immigration enforcement in Chicago and across the country.

CHICAGO - Immigrant rights leaders, labor organizers and elected officials gathered Monday morning in downtown Chicago to denounce President Donald Trump’s latest proposals targeting immigrant communities.

Trump protest in Chicago

The press conference came hours after a new Trump-backed travel ban officially took effect.

The event was organized by members of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR), along with SEIU, Equity and Transformation (EAT), and several community-based organizations.

Activists called on the city of Chicago, the state and federal authorities to ensure Illinoisans are protected and safe.

Chanting "immigrants are welcome here," groups rallied at Daley Plaza, along with multiple unions, denouncing immigration enforcement in Chicago and across the country.

"As a Yemeni-American myself, there is a deep fear and anxiety that my community is facing right now," Nadiah Alyafai, of the Arab American Action Network, said.

What they're saying:

Fasika Alem from the United African Organization said, "We want to make clear that all people deserve dignity, respect and the right to stay, and all people deserve a community that fights for them."

Grace Chan McKibben, Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community said, "All immigrant communities, regardless of which country they are from, are under attack by Trump’s racist and fascist policies."

In Chicago last week, immigrants were instructed to report for a routine check-in. They were separated from their families and attorneys and arrested in the South Loop. Protesters and elected officials tried to stop federal agents. There was pushing and tension but it ended peacefully. 

Protesters on Monday said their fight is only beginning.

"Know that we reject any authoritarian measures that seek to take us back because we ain't going back, we are going forward together as one united people," U.S. Rep. Jesus "Chuy" Garcia said.

Garcia warned the next targets will be the documented and American citizens because of what he called "a lawless administration."

Organizers said Trump’s campaign rhetoric and policy proposals—including deportation quotas shaped by adviser Stephen Miller, renewed attacks on sanctuary policies and the criminalization of labor leaders—represent a growing threat to immigrant families and communities.

What's next:

The protest also set the tone for a week of immigrant-related events, including a court hearing Tuesday for Wisconsin resident Ramon Morales Reyes, who advocates said was falsely accused by ICE and a congressional hearing Thursday where Gov. JB Pritzker is expected to testify about the Illinois TRUST Act.