‘We stand with the immigrant community’: Madison leaders respond to potential ICE arrests next week

Amy Reid by Amy Reid

City of Madison officials have issued a statement following President Donald Trump’s announcement on Twitter that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will be making mass arrests next week.

In a tweet on Monday, Trump wrote, “Next week, ICE will begin the process of removing the millions of illegal aliens who have illicitly found their way into the United States. They’ll be removed as fast as they come in.”

In a press release Tuesday, Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway and Common Council leadership said they had not received any information about increased enforcement in the Madison area, but they said they are keeping a close eye on ICE presence and will keep the community informed.

Yesterday @realDonaldTrump tweeted that ICE will make another round of mass arrests next week. Here’s what @CityofMadison has to say: pic.twitter.com/ChxTIldYpq

— Amy Reid (@amyreidreports) June 19, 2019

“It is unfortunate that President Trump continues to threaten immigrant communities,” they wrote in the release. “We, as a city, stand with the immigrant community and will work collaboratively with community leaders to respond to any increase in ICE enforcement.”

This comes months after ICE made another round of arrests last fall, where 83 people in Wisconsin were arrested, 20 of whom in Dane County.

At the time, Madison officials and law enforcement held multiple news conferences about ICE’s presence in the area. In one, Chief Mike Koval said the agency did not follow protocol by not informing the department ahead of any arrests.

“We’re very disappointed in how ice and the federal government are conducting themselves and we are making our best effort to work with community leaders and to make sure the rights of those individuals in ice’s custody are fully protected,” then-Mayor Paul Soglin said.

On Tuesday, Common Council President Shiva Bidar said that time was traumatizing, particularly for children, some of whom she said were kept home from school because of their parents’ fear.

“It really has a huge impact on children,” Bidar said. “That’s trauma that stays with them forever.”

She said multiple agencies besides the city are willing to work with immigrants seeking legal assistance during this time, including Centro Hispano and Dane County Immigration Affairs Services.

Bidar said Centro Hispano will work to update the community on the status of any potential raids on its Facebook page.

Dane County Immigration Affairs Services can be reached at 608-242-6260.

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