Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is yet again threatening a locality with increased raids and arrests over pro-immigrant policy limiting local cooperation with the mass deportation agency, this time in Wisconsin’s Milwaukee County. Local immigrant rights advocates, however, are standing firm. “Our community will not be blackmailed,” said Mario Ramirez of Voces de la Frontera.
Late last month, Sheriff Earnell Lucas—busy trying to correct the many wrongs of the very shitty former sheriff David Clarke—made good on a campaign pledge to not hand over people and information to ICE unless ordered by a judge. This, as groups like Voces de la Frontera have long advocated, is how localities should be operating in the first place. But of course, the thugs at ICE have a problem with that.
In response, the agency has recycled a threat telling the county they’ll have no choice but to “continue to conduct at-large arrests in local neighborhoods and at work sites, which will inevitably result in additional collateral arrests.” ICE used nearly identical wording for threats directed at California and New Jersey, also over pro-immigrant policy.
“ICE’s retaliatory threat against Milwaukee families is horrific and absolutely chilling,” said Rebecca Lynch of Wisconsin Working Families Party. “In a democracy, elections matter. Our democratically elected sheriff ran on a platform of advancing true public safety, building trust with communities, and not honoring unconstitutional ICE detainers. The people of Milwaukee County will not allow a rogue deportation force to terrorize our communities and usurp our democracy.”
In November, other voters in states like North Carolina also ousted sheriffs who worked hand-in-hand with ICE, which routinely—and falsely—claims immigrant communities are a danger. In reality, this out-of-control agency is the threat. “Ending ICE collaboration is keeping families together, protecting constitutional rights, and improving public safety by allowing all people to be safe in contacting law enforcement to report crime,” Ramirez continued. “ICE's threats just show that ICE is not a law enforcement agency, but a family separation agency.”
