ICE raids take 16 Flagstaff residents

November 26th, 2008 by Sarah Pickering

Protesters gather Thursday evening at the corner of E Butler and E Sawmill rd to protest the deportation of illegal immigrants and to support immigration rights. The protesters held signs and chanted in front of a news camera to show their support. - Jim Truncali/ The Lumberjack


U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrived in Flagstaff on Wednesday, Nov. 19 to arrest undocumented citizens with criminal records, sparking an impromptu protest by various immigrant rights and activist groups.

On Nov. 20, the Repeal Coalition, a group dedicated to the repeal of all anti-immigration legislation in Arizona, organized various efforts to warn the community that members of ICE would be conducting raids in target neighborhoods. ICE is a governmental agency responsible for identifying and investigating illegal activity with regards to the United States border.

The Repeal Coalition gathered a group of approxminately two dozen people at Killip Elementary School in Sunnyside to escort children to their homes. In the evening, the group, including members from CopWatch, ASWI, NAU Peace and Justice, MEChA and Save the Peaks protested numbers of arrests already made by ICE.

Approximately 70 people stood near the county jail on Butler Avenue chanting, ā€œICE is on thin iceā€