As immigration arrests spike in Chicago, activists escalate tactics to fight back

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A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) vehicle is parked in front of an ICE processing facility in the Chicago suburb of Broadview, Ill., Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

CHICAGO – As encounters with federal immigration agents around Chicago increase , tactics used by activists and immigrant leaders to fight back are also escalating.

The Trump administration has singled out Chicago as its latest mark for immigration enforcement, using traffic stops in immigrant-heavy areas and targeting day laborers outside hardware stores.

“We will not back down,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted Thursday on X, recirculating dramatic footage of arrests at a suburban Chicago home days earli