A report by ABC 7 Chicago News sparked outrage Wednesday after it aired interviews with several residents detailing how to avoid detection and capture by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials.
The self-described sanctuary city of Chicago has been anticipating President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration since he won the White House in November. Public schools, teachers and religious leaders have been preparing to protect students and parishioners as the likelihood increases of ICE agents showing up.
"We started attending know your rights training so that we could know how to defend ourselves and our students, if anyone tries to, if ICE tries to communicate with us or potentially detain somebody," said Erin, a Chicago Public Schools teacher.
ABC 7 Chicago News anchor Cheryl Burton introduced the segment from the studio before passing the story to Michelle Gallardo on the street.
"Chicago's immigrant community is on edge tonight as Michelle Gallardo reports, activists and elected officials are canvassing neighborhoods, letting people know their rights should ICE come knocking, don't open for ICE," Burton said. Gallardo then spoke to local business owners who had "don't open for ICE" posters and gave illegal immigrants advice on how to avoid detection by the Trump administration.
"We've been out here since 5 a.m., educating the community, educating our people that they have rights. You have the right to an attorney. You have a right to a trial," said Baltazar Enriquez, a member of Little Village Community Council.
The Daily Mail highlighted some angry reaction from locals on social media.
"Imagine if Chicago had an unbiased media that served the interests of the public not the interests of the WOKE Democrats who it carries water for," one user wrote on X.
"HOW IS THIS ALLOWED?? They are here ILLEGALLY," another user wrote.
"What rights should illegal aliens have?" another added. "Doesn't this make her an accessory? Or something of that nature? Send her to jail. Things will not get cleaned up until there are consequences for choices media are responsible for where they point their cameras and what comes out of their mouth."
Trump made illegal immigration and its deleterious impact on society a key issue of his campaign, promising to conduct mass deportations of illegal immigrants once elected.
"We're going to have the largest deportation in the history of our country," Trump said in October during a speech in Los Angeles.
In the first full day of Trump's second term, border czar Tom Homan said 308 criminal illegal immigrants were apprehended across the U.S.
"Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America's schools and churches to avoid arrest. The Trump Administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement, and instead trusts them to use common sense," a spokesperson with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security told ABC7.
James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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