By Ella Ware
On Saturday, Sept. 12, Kent County Indivisible held a rally demanding that ICE be abolished in Grand Rapids. Protesters met at Sixth Street Park at 10 a.m. to sing protest songs and call for Grand Rapids to be made a “sanctuary city”.
A sanctuary city is a municipal jurisdiction that limits local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities.
After about two hours of singing and speaking, more than 70 people marched from the park to 517 Ottawa Ave. NW, in Grand Rapids, where the ICE Field Office is located.
Representatives from Kent County Indivisible, Unite and Resist GR, No Detention Centers Michigan, General Strike US, Movimiento Cosecha, and the Grand Rapids Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression all spoke out at the rally. Lain Martinez-Vasquez, a member of the Singing Resistance of Grand Rapids, led call-and-response songs with lyrics like “no one is getting left behind this time, we get there together or never get there at all” and “we’re not gonna take it.”
After the songs, many of the groups participating in the protest spoke out against the deportations taking place in West Michigan. Joshua Ferguson, 28, represented the Grand Rapids Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.
“Here in Kent County, we have lost over 1,000 people to deportation since Trump took office. To put that in perspective, today’s the 600th day of Trump’s second term. That’s more than one person per day in just this county,” said Ferguson. “A school kid loses their best friend, a neighborhood loses a pillar, a heart breaks… more than once per day.”
In her speech, Ferguson explained why she believes Michigan has the capability to make changes.
“This isn’t a form of law enforcement, this is a terror campaign,” Ferguson said. “In 1855, the state of Michigan was only 18 years old and had the guts and political will to pass the Personal Freedom Act. This law effectively made it impossible to enforce the federal fugitive slave law in our state. It prevented the use of county and municipal jails for use by southern slave catchers. It made it a crime to hold any free person with the intent to send them into slavery, punishable by five years’ jail time.”
When asked more, Ferguson, who has been with the Alliance for two years, further explained the organization and its mission to support the community.
“We do a lot of work around supporting folks who have faced violence at the hands of the state. We gave court support to the Lyoya family during that trial when Christopher Shurr was being tried last year. We have provided support for Samuel Sterling and Dequan Johnson’s families,” Ferguson said. “Our ultimate goal is to call for community-controlled police, which effectively (means calling for) a school board-like entity for public safety in the city. So, where it would be publicly elected and therefore would be direct accountability with voters,” She further explained.
“Everything kind of, like, ramped up in the wake of Trump’s election, and I was looking to get involved with something that was specifically policy focused. That was my reason for joining.”
“Realizing the scale of the federal system and how much it was coming down on people I care about. It’s our city, it’s our neighbors, it’s our community members, right?” Ferguson said. “As a trans person, it’s like, there was a huge effect on our community specifically, and ultimately, it’s about making friends and having enough of an organization that we can take on that state.”
Following the speeches, more than 70 of the protesters marched to the ICE facility. As they walked, they held signs and chanted, “Say it loud, say it clear, immigrants are welcome here. Say it once, say it twice, we will not put up with ICE.”
As the protesters approached the facility, Grand Rapids Police Department vehicles were blocking the alleyway at 517 Ottawa Ave NW, behind the ICE Field Office, so that a GEO van could exit. Detainees are held at this facility before being transferred to GEO Group’s North Lake Detention Center.
There was speculation among the demonstrators that four people were being held inside the van, and a GRPD cruiser escorted the van out of the alleyway.
Protesters then quickly entered the alleyway from both sides, yelling outside the garage of the ICE building, banging on the door and nearby dumpster. GRPD closed in on both sides of the alley and demanded that everybody leave the area, or they would face arrest.
Some protesters were thrown to the ground by police, and five protesters were arrested and transported to the Kent County Jail for failing to leave the alleyway. The charges included malicious destruction of property (MDOP), resisting and obstructing, meddling and tampering, and failure to obey a lawful order. Protesters were in the area for about an hour and a half.
“Since 2019, GRPD has had a policy (MOP 7-12) that governs interactions with foreign nationals to ensure equal enforcement of the law and equal service to the public regardless of citizenship or immigration status. Policies are publicly available on the department’s website,” said a GRPD spokesperson.
“GRPD is neither responsible for, nor has the authority to, enforce federal civil immigration laws used to detain or remove undocumented immigrants from the United States. This means that GRPD does not serve as a civil immigration enforcement agency for the federal government,” said the spokesperson. “We do not take the responsibility of performing immigration functions unrelated to investigating and enforcing criminal violations. We do not have, nor are we contemplating any, 287(g) agreements with ICE.”
A 287(g) agreement is a formal partnership between ICE and local or state law enforcement agencies that delegates specific federal immigration authority to local officers.
“GRPD does respond to incidents where there is an element of public safety or criminal activity (for example, trespassing, illegally blocking roadways, MDOP, etc.) which aligns with our law enforcement responsibilities, regardless of the involved parties.”
The spectacle drew an audience with people watching from their balconies as everything unfolded. Motorists honked their horns in support as they passed by.
Martinez-Vasquez of the Singing Resistance stood in the alley with a microphone and sang, “Change your ways, change your ways. It’s not too late to change your ways,” as GRPD officers stood outside their cruisers.
After the crowd dispersed, the arrested protesters were transported to the Kent County Jail. Many members of the crowd followed in support, waiting for all five people to be released on bail once they arrived.
Collegiate editor Kyle Jackson contributed to this story.
