Protesters return to Illinois' Broadview on Friday after judge temporarily blocks National Guard
Published in News & Features
CHICAGO — Protesters gathered outside a federal building in Broadview on Friday, a day after a judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from using the National Guard in its immigration enforcement efforts.
Friday protests have become a weekly event at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center, where federal agents have deployed tear gas and fired baton rounds at demonstrators on multiple occasions. The confrontations prompted local authorities to create a so-called Free Speech Zone, a dedicated area for people to voice opposition to the mass deportation mission.
There was no visible presence of the Texas National Guard at the facility Friday. The troops were occasionally spotted there Thursday before the judge’s ruling, but did not interact with protesters.
The Pentagon did not clarify what the Guard was doing in the meantime. A Tribune journalist spotted uniformed troops at the U.S. Army Reserve Training Center in suburban Elwood, where the Texas National Guard has been garrisoned since Tuesday. A few appeared to be carrying rifles as they walked around the sprawling 3,600-acre property located about 50 miles southwest of Chicago.
“As a matter of long-standing policy, the Department does not comment on ongoing litigation,” the Department of Defense wrote in a statement. “The federalized National Guard personnel will remain in a federalized status; we don’t have any other details to provide at this time.”
By 9:15 a.m., about 150 protesters had gathered at Harvard Street and 25th Avenue near an ICE holding facility. The group chanted “Down down with deportation” while some carried signs that said “Trump out.” One demonstrator dressed in a cow costume and carried a sign that said “this heifer hates Nazis.”
Local law enforcement arrested at least three people about 8:30 a.m. after they attempted to block vehicle access to Harvard Street. Authorities didn’t use tear gas, although some carried batons. Law enforcement, which included Illinois State Police and Broadview police, also didn’t appear to enforce an order from Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson limiting protest activity from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
About 100 protesters had gathered at the intersection by 8 a.m., although authorities requested that a smaller group at Beach Street near the fence by the facility leave until the designated hours. Some chanted the “Constitution ends at 9 a.m.” while they backed away to the sidewalk.
This week’s protests have taken on a decidedly different tone as U.S. District Judge April Perry barred the president from deploying federalized National Guard troops from any state to any location in Illinois for “Operation Midway Blitz,” the administration’s immigration enforcement efforts in the Chicago area. In making her ruling, Perry, who was appointed to the bench by President Joe Biden, said she had no faith in the government’s claims of out-of-control violence and that it was federal agents who started it by aggressively targeting protesters with tear gas and militaristic tactics.
It remains unclear if troops already assigned to areas around Chicago, including Broadview, will remain.
The White House has appealed Perry’s decision.
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