Abductions by federal immigration agents follow recent evictions from city parks.
The Latino Union of Chicago, via its Adopt a Corner initiative, organizes patrols to watch for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other federal agents at intersections and landmarks where day laborers gather to look for work. One such spot is near the intersection of Lawrence and Pulaski, close to Gompers Park. Among the laborers gathered there the morning of October 29 was Theo, an unhoused man who lived in the area. His birthday was a day earlier.
“Theo came to this housing site [near Lawrence and Pulaski] because he saw camaraderie with the other folks who are trying their best to survive,” said Adam, a participant in Adopt a Corner. Adam was friendly with Theo (both Theo and Adam are pseudonyms). The two talked often over baked goods donated by a nearby restaurant. On the 29th, Adam was patrolling a few blocks away when, at approximately 10:30 AM, a black SUV pulled into an alley southeast of the Pulaski and Lawrence intersection. In footage viewed by the Reader, agents with U.S. Border Patrol patches jumped out of the SUV and grabbed Theo, shoving him to his knees in the street before dragging him to the vehicle and pushing him inside. The abduction took less than a minute.
Credit: Amber Huff
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“Chicago advocates were hearing concerns from unsheltered community members about how to navigate potential federal enforcement presence and interactions in public spaces, especially public transportation,” wrote Melissa West, staff attorney and Equal Justice Works fellow with the Law Project of the Chicago Coalition to End Homelessness, over email. In response, the Chicago Coalition to End Homelessness worked with local mutual aid organizers, as well as advocates in D.C. who endured troop deployment earlier this year, to create know your rights one-pagers for unhoused people. “Know Your Rights as an Unsheltered Person: Federal Enforcement in Chicago” is available in both English and Spanish.
