Chicago communities unite in vigil for those lost in ICE murders

Chicago, IL – On Wednesday, July 15, more than 200 Chicagoans held a vigil and marched in Little Village to honor the two victims shot and killed by ICE this past week; Lorenzo Salgado Araujo on July 8 in Houston, Texas, and Joan Sebastian Guerrero on July 12 in Biddeford, Maine.

“ICE agents continue to roam the streets and kidnap our people, and here in this neighborhood of La Villita they continue to tear apart families,” stated Gio Araujo of the Immigrant Rights Working Committee of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (IRWC of CAARPR)

Araujo continued, “We have been campaigning to hold the Chicago Police Department accountable for their actions taken during Operation Midway Blitz and to this day such as the what we saw in Albany Park this last month.”

Marcela Rodriguez of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights stated that “federal immigration agents have engaged in at least 39 shootings since January 2025. Those shootings have resulted in 11 deaths, including Silverio Villegas-Gonzalez here in Chicago. Clearly this shows that murder is one of ICE’s tactics.” Marcela called for Illinois police departments to issue protocols to prevent unlawful actions in and around court houses by ICE. “The choice is clear, they can either proactively prevent the next ICE murder, or they can stand idly by as ICE continues to terrorize our communities.”

Anna Guieb, from Tangol Migrante Chicago, highlighted the struggles that Filipino immigrants endure both in the homeland and in the U.S. when they arrive in search of a better life. “We are here to both honor all those we have lost, but also to fight like hell for the living.”

Jay Starks of CAARPR’s Campaign to Free Incarcerated Survivors of Torture (CFIST) emphasized the urgency for Chicago alderpersons to support the Community Power of Policing (CPOP) referendum. “Any official who speaks against accountability right now should be questioned, and that includes State’s Attorney Burke. Any official who opposes CPOP doesn’t see a connection between ICE murders, CPD torture and wrongful convictions needs to hear from us regularly,” said Starks.

As the vigil concluded in prayer and words of solidarity, the crowd then took to the streets and marched along 26th Street. Workers of nearby businesses came out in solidarity with chants of “Justicia for Lorenzo!” and “Justicia for Guerrero!” The march then concluded at a nearby park with a moment of silence for all victims of ICE violence.

The vigil and march was organized by the Immigrant Rights Working Committee with support from ICIRR, Tangol Migrante and Mexican Students de Aztlan at UIC in response to Legalization 4 All’s call for a week of action demanding justice for Lorenzo Salgado-Araujo and Nadia Topete.

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