Immigrant groups protest last week’s ICE arrests

FAIRFAX, Va. 鈥斅燨utside U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement headquarters, several dozen protesters held signs and raised their voices in response to recently announced immigration stings in the D.C. area.

鈥淚CE is an insatiable monster that has now been completely unleashed to intimidate and raid our communities,鈥� said Isaias Guerrero of Sanctuary DMV, a group that, according to its website, is 鈥渄edicated to protecting immigrants and targeted communities.鈥�

Holding butterfly signs 鈥� which they said symbolizes the freedom to migrate 鈥� the crowd chanted in Spanish 鈥淗ere we are, and we are not leaving,鈥� and 鈥渘ot one more deportation.鈥�

Last week, ICE announced it had completed a five-day operation that resulted in the arrest of 82 people believed to be in this country illegally. (草莓传媒/Mike Murillo)

Outside U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement headquarters, several dozen protesters held signs and raised their voices in response to recently announced immigration stings in the D.C. area. (草莓传媒/Mike Murillo)

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Last week, ICE announced it had completed a five-day operationpeople believed to be in this country illegally.

According to ICE, 68 of the 82 people arrested had previous criminal convictions, and two had ties to the MS-13 gang, .

鈥淚CE conducts targeted immigration enforcement operations focused on criminal aliens,鈥� said Yvonne Evans, Enforcement and Removal Operations Washington Field Office director.

鈥淭his week鈥檚 operation successfully removed immigration violators with a variety of criminal convictions ranging from driving under the influence to grand larceny from our communities.鈥�

Salem Acu帽a of Mijente, a social justice network, said a U.S. crackdown on undocumented immigrants ramped up under President Obama and now continues under President Donald Trump.

鈥淲hat we鈥檙e seeing is actually a lot of the same, not any less, and not any worse, just more boldly, and more publicly, and more unapologetically,鈥� Acu帽a said.

People suspected of being in this country illegally should be entitled to due process, said Acu帽a, who condemned ICE program 287(g), under which police officers can receive training similar to that of immigration officers.

There are many myths about crime and undocumented immigrants, Acu帽a said, and he and others are working to dispel those myths.

The recent news of a rape at a Rockville High School 鈥� in which two students in the U.S. illegally have been accused 鈥� has made dispelling such myths challenging, he said.

鈥淚t鈥檚 an excuse to punish and criminalize groups of people that are so far away from what happened in Rockville,鈥� Acu帽a said.

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