President Trump announced over twitter that ICE would be conducting nationwide raids on July 11 to deport undocumented migrants. Approximately 2,000 migrants across ten cities were targeted for deportation. ICE announced last week that raids would happen in Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York and San Francisco beginning Sunday. Due to Tropical Storm Barry, raids in Houston and New Orleans were postponed.
Before Sunday, local governments and civil rights groups informed the public of their rights when dealing with ICE through social media posts. On June 10, demonstrators were out in the streets protesting the Trump administration’s treatment of migrants.
In downtown Redmond, a group of a few hundred people gathered to make sure their voices were heard. “We are trying not to impede ICE,” said Louise Café, a member of Indivisible Eastside, “we are trying to inform people about their rights, so that way people know that if ICE comes to their door, they don’t have to open it.” Many of the demonstrators said that the reason why the protest happened in Redmond was due to accessibility.
Sunday came to pass, and no raids were reported anywhere. Watchdog groups noted that there was very little ICE activity. Adonai Simpson, director of Family Defense for the Nonprofit Americans for Immigrant Justice, told the Miami Herald, “I can’t help but feel like we are waiting for the other shoe to drop, given the anxiety I have been feeling, I can only imagine the fear our immigrant communities feel this morning.” Migrants reportedly stayed in their home or hid in secure locations. These raids were meant to focus on families who had received final orders of removal after not going to court. Top administration officials claim that these families have also ignored requests to turn themselves in.
A recent politico poll found that 51% of voters support sweeping raids, comprising a slim majority of voters.
On Monday, President Trump claimed that ICE had carried out a slew of successful raids. The next day ICE officials came forward and disputed that claim. The administration is now saying that instead of conducting one large wave of raids, ICE is planning to conduct smaller scale raids over the next few weeks. ICE has been accused of using subversive tactics in order to take migrants into custody. Since Sunday, ICE has been conducting regular sweeps and arresting small groups of people across the country.