“Get back! Get back!” and a flurry of other commands came from bystanders and federal agents through heavy tear gas smoke emitting from 105th and Avenue N in Chicago, Illinois. Agents clad in military uniforms and concealed with gas masks pointed their guns as they advanced on the surrounding crowd, forcing some to the ground while others tried to escape from the suffocating scene.
This scene, shared to X on Oct. 14 by Pablo Manríquez, is one of many in a string of detainments and unexpected raids launched by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as part of a larger operation dubbed “Operation Midway Blitz”
designed to “…target the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens in Chicago,” according to a statement released by the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS).
While the string of Chicago raids have sent shockwaves throughout the nation, immigration lawyer Robert Armstrong said that ICE operations such as this Blitz do not occur in a vacuum.
Chicago joins a list of cities that President Donald Trump has targeted in his immigration agenda, including Washington D.C., Portland and Memphis along with New Orleans, San Francisco, Oakland and Baltimore, according to ABC Chicago.
Armstrong pointed out Trump’s focus on urban cities and communities of color.
“This is not something we are seeing in isolation, it’s a continued pattern of focusing
on urban cities,” Armstrong said. “It’s no coincidence that this is occurring more frequently in parts of the country where you see more minorities.”
On Sept. 2, while Washington, D.C. was under federal takeover by more than 2,000 National Guard troops, Trump declared that their next stop would be Chicago, stating that “there is no place in the world, including Afghanistan, that comes close to this. Chicago is a hellhole.”
However, according to a statement released by the office of Mayor Brandon Johnson of Chicago, “In the first six months of this year, Chicago has seen a 33 percent reduction in homicides and a 38 percent reduction in shootings.”
Noah Jackson, a Chicago native and senior journalism student at Howard University, stands in opposition to Trump’s rhetoric. Jackson believes that Trump’s characterization of Chicago as the “crime capital of the world” is representative of his political agenda.
“Republicans love to talk about Chicago crimes, but they never talk about the people. They never talk about the victims,” Jackson said. “They only want to throw a number
at people and get them scared, and they can lie about that number, because who is going to check it?”
Dylan Wesley, who was also born and raised in Chicago, is a senior computer information student at Howard University. Wesley said that while gun violence is an
issue in Chicago, he would not characterize the city as the “most dangerous in the word.” He believes that failures in addressing systemic issues that breed violence underscore crime in Chicago, he said.
Despite immigrants being labeled as the main targets, a raid that took place in the South Shore neighborhood of Chicago proved to be contrary to the administration’s outlined goals in Operation Midway Blitz.
On Sept. 30, witnesses captured videos of a Blackhawk helicopter circling in the sky as unmarked vans and SUVs surrounded an apartment building on South Shore Drive. A combination of masked and unmasked agents tore into the five-story building and dragged people, including children, out onto the street where they were zip tied and detained in the back of trucks for hours. The people detained included Black and Latinx individuals.
Amongst those detained were American citizens, seemingly calling into question Operation Midway Blitz and its plan to catch ‘undocumented criminals.’
The sweeping ICE operations in Chicago have left residents concerned for their
safety — Jackson expressed worry for himself, his family and community.
“They’re trying to disappear people in Chicago, and trying to use whatever information they have. They are targeting people that largely have not committed any crimes,” Jackson said.
Wesley said his family feels unsafe. He, however, is confused about ICE’s rationale, he said.
“I supposed that the goal of ICE was to detain supposed illegal immigrants from Latin America, but the raid happened in an almost exclusively Black community. It doesn’t make sense to me,” Wesley stated. “I think that Donald Trump is using his followers’ racism against immigrants to cause a ruckus and create a distraction from
his real agenda.”
Mayor Johnson took to Instagram to condemn the ICE raids Oct. 4, warning that Trump’s political motives point to a class war.
“These public stunts are not about immigration but are serving this unhinged president’s war on the poor on behalf of the ultra rich,” Johnson said.
Torene Harvin, a communications specialist and Chicago resident of 10 years, observed the disproportionate presence of ICE agents in the south side. With Chicago acting as a sanctuary city for many immigrants, Harvin said that ICE is targeting areas where immigrants are seeking refuge. Harvin continued, stating that immigrants come to Chicago looking to make a better life for themselves.
“Everything I see on the news is insane to watch. I know that they’re targeting lower income neighborhoods because that’s where a lot of people are seeking asylum,”
Harvin said.
Chicago became a sanctuary city in 1985 when then Mayor Harold Washington signed an executive order preventing police from sharing immigration status with federal authorities, according to WGN-TV. According 2024 Census Bureau data, immigrants comprise approximately 22 percent of Chicago’s population.
Harvin also expressed concern and confusion about ICE’s actions in Chicago and
across the country. Pointing out that people have been taken from their homes, detained and sent to unknown places, Harvin called into question
ICE’s motives.
“There is no strategic plan, they’re pulling people out of their homes and detaining them, and it doesn’t make sense. Where are these people going?” Harvin said.
While ICE is granted broad authority to enforce immigration laws, Armstrong noted that the Trump administration is going to extreme lengths to utilize the department. He warned that if checks and balances aren’t put in place, the Trump administration will continue to test the waters.
“Whenever an action like this occurs, and there are not significant ramifications and repercussions, it’s an implicit green light for the next action which pushes the envelope a little further,” Armstrong said.
Copy edited by Damenica Ellis
