BROADVIEW, Ill. – The Village of Broadview, which houses an ICE facility at the center of increasingly heated protests in recent weeks, said immigration agents will launch “enforcement action” throughout the suburb on Saturday.
In a statement, the village said ICE informed the Broadview Police Department that there will be “a s*** show” in the village on Saturday.
What we know:
The comment from ICE came as retaliation for the village on Friday calling on ICE to “stop making war on our community,” according to the village’s statement.
“ICE agents told the BFD that they will be launching enforcement action throughout all of Broadview throughout the day. Additionally, ICE informed BPD officials that ICE agents will be again deploying chemical arms, such as tear gas, pepper spray, etc. against American citizens, our residents, and our first responders,” according to the village of Broadview.
A spokesperson for ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the village’s statement on Saturday morning. It was unclear exactly what the nature of the ICE enforcement would be, although some protests are reportedly planned at the facility on Saturday afternoon.
Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson is urging Broadview residents to “take all necessary precautions to protect themselves and their families in order to stay out of harm’s way.”
The village statement added, “ICE is seeking to intimidate the Village of Broadview because we dared exercise our 1st Amendment constitutional rights calling for an end to their war on Broadview. We will not be intimidated. We are Broadview strong.”
The latest comments come the day after federal agents used pepper pellets and gas canisters to disperse protesters outside the ICE facility in Broadview on Friday morning, where demonstrators were attempting to block operations tied to a recent enforcement sweep.