Chicago, IL – On Tuesday, September 1, two dozen students gathered at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) Quad on a blazing hot afternoon. The students rallied for a national day of action called for by the New Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) demanding “ICE off campus!” as well as protection for undocumented students, and a sanctuary campus.

“ICE is an illegal gestapo with the sole purpose to profile, dehumanize and disappear people of color,” said Aidan Shaw, a member of New SDS at UIC.

Shaw continued, “They wear masks because they are cowards and know what they are doing is wrong. They drive unmarked vehicles, because they want to stay untraced, and because their formation has been rushed by a disorganized leader. They do not have badges or warrants, because they do not have training, legal permission from judges, and because they are an illegitimate organization. But the city of Chicago is strong, and we have fought back!”

Speakers recalled the events of the fall 2025-2026 school year, when Mexican Students de Aztlán (MeSA) led hundreds of students in protesting the ICE kidnapping of two women on campus. Student speakers described the UIC administration’s lackluster response. The two women were eventually released due to their being recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) – a status still actively held by nearly 450,000 immigrants in the United States.

“We all remember the occupation of our city, Chicago, by hundreds of ICE agents and National Guard almost a year ago in what was dubbed ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ by the racist and reactionary Trump administration. Many of us lived in fear of what could happen to ourselves, our loved ones, and our neighbors,” said Ángel Naranjos, a member of MeSA.

Naranjos explained, “We saw what happened on September 12, 2025, when a Mexican man who was simply dropping off his children to school was racially profiled and murdered by ICE agents. His name was Silverio Villegas, and he should still be alive today. Keith Porter, Renee Good, Alex Pretti, and Pierre Damas Bel – a Haitian student who was tragically driven to suicide by this racist administration – should still be alive today!”

Jacob Belencion from Anakbayan at UIC, a Filipino youth and student organization, said, ”ICE is still present on the streets of Chicagoland, and their tactics have changed to be more hidden. In fact, they are now trying to achieve a quota of detaining 2000 people a day. Shame!”

Belencion continued, “Since the start of this administration and the daily terror that ICE has brought upon us, we have seen many of our fellow migrants detained. Filipinos like Kuya J have faced horrible conditions in the detention centers, such as the overcrowded cells where he was forced to drink from the toilet, among others, because ICE did not provide drinkable water. Shame!”

“It is ICE who is terrorizing our neighbors. It is ICE who is ripping through our streets and disrupting our communities,” said Maya Sánchez, a Freedom Road Socialist Organization member.

 “That’s why we need more than reform – we need a socialist revolution to dismantle the system of capitalism that has given birth to the racism and repression that creates bullshit institutions like ICE in the first place! We need to transfer power from the hands of the monopoly capitalists to the hands of working and oppressed people. Only then can we put an end to ICE’s terror,” said Sánchez.

“I’d like to end this protest with a powerful chant popularized by the late Chicago Black Panther – Fred Hampton – who would have turned 78 years old this past Sunday had the government not murdered him in cold blood at the age of 21,” said Ariana Vega, co-chair of New SDS at UIC.

“Dare to struggle! Dare to win!”

Endorsing organizations included Anakbayan at UIC, Fearless Undocumented Alliance, Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), and Mexican Students de Aztlán (MeSA) who co-emceed the protest alongside UIC’s New SDS chapter.

#ChicagoIL #IL #StudentMovement #ImmigrantRights #UIC #SDS