Local organizations are sharing lessons learned here and in Los Angeles with rapid-response teams in the Charlotte area, where federal agents began operations over the weekend. « Education is key. »
When federal immigration agents moved into Chicago’s streets, the sound of whistles followed. For months, the sharp blasts rang through many of the city’s neighborhoods, alerting residents to the presence of agents and attracting observers and protesters.
The whistles have grown into a symbol of resistance in Chicago — and have already spread to other parts of the country targeted by President Donald Trump’s immigration blitz.
“It’s effective because people start understanding that if they hear the whistle, they should run or hide,” said Baltazar Enriquez, president of the Little Village Community Council. “Our idea of the whistle grew like wildfire.”
As federal immigration agencies this week ramp up their enforcement in Charlotte, North Carolina, making more than 130 arrests over the weekend, Enriquez and other Chicago-area community leaders have been sharing the lessons they learned with their coastal counterparts.
Enriquez said his group met virtually with several dozen political and nonprofit leaders in North Carolina last week. On the agenda were the whistle campaign in Chicago and the “magic school bus,” a volunteer group that escorts children of parents who fear being detained during school pickups and drop-offs.
The groups also discussed the legal rights immigrants have and the forms and procedures involved for detainees seeking legal representation, Enriquez said.
