Copyright Chicago Tribune
Barbers paused haircuts to look out windows and bakers in aprons peered out doorways along West 26th Street in Little Village to the sounds of whistles and chants from young voices echoing down the street. Since the Trump administration’s Operation Midway Blitz began in September, whistles have been used as warnings that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is nearby. But on Tuesday, the whistle-blowing coincided with students carrying Mexican flags and signs during a staged walkout of local schools. In an over 2-mile walk, hundreds of students made their way from Little Village Lawndale High School to the La Villita or Little Village Arch, denouncing recent ICE action and supporting immigrant communities. Immigration enforcement descended on Little Village last week, resulting in multiple people being taken into custody. The sobering effect the arrival of federal officers had on the community inspired the walkout, student organizer and Social Justice High School senior Lia Sophia Lopez said. “They hurt us like they’ve never hurt us before. They attacked our community, they surrounded the parks, they surrounded our school, I’ve never felt more unsafe in my life than that day,” Lopez said. “We need to protect our people’s peace. We need to protect their freedom and dignity. Because if we don’t, no one else will.” Lopez and other students organized the walkout, which included her peers from the four schools on Little Village Lawndale High School’s campus – Multicultural Academy of Scholarship High School, World Language High School, Greater Lawndale High School for Social Justice, and Infinity Math, Science, and Technology High School. With less than a week of planning, Lopez said she was pleased with the large turnout and made sure her fellow students knew the risks of protesting, including the presence of federal agents, telling them “they will not stop because you are children” and “they do not care,” she said. Still, fear did not stop students accompanied by Chicago police officers as they moved along the route. Chants of “say it loud, say it clear, immigrants are welcome here,” and “the people united, will never be divided” drew honks from cars stopped along the marchers’ path. The march through the village drew people to the sidewalks, cheering and blowing whistles in solidarity with students as they passed. Others hung out of windows that overlooked the streets or pressed themselves against storefront windows, smiling and recording. The community engagement was not lost on Lopez, who said her “beautiful, vibrant home” has gone quiet amid the recent federal action. “I’ve seen so many people come out and smiling and feeling safe, which is something we haven’t felt in months. And that’s what I want. That is all I want,” Lopez said. “This protest was just for us to get peace, to be able to walk down the street again without being scared, to be able to live your life.” For Lopez, protesting was worth whatever potential consequences. When her peers and family expressed concerns, she pushed back. “I said to them, I don’t care if I get expelled, I don’t care if I get detained. … I will do this for my people, for my community, because they deserve it,” Lopez said. “They deserve people to speak out for them. They deserve people to show the love and appreciation that they give to us and to our students, Social Justice and Little Village Lawndale High School as a whole.”
