Halloween is a holiday usually characterized by candy, creative costumes and fun. This year, the fear many Evanston residents felt on Oct. 31 didn’t fit the mold.
An Evanston Township High School parent, who requested anonymity for fear of retribution by federal immigration agents, was concerned about his son going out for Halloween. He recognized it was an important social event, but federal immigration activity throughout the city on Friday left him feeling uneasy.
“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do,” the parent said at the time. “I feel powerless.”
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson confirmed that the U.S. Border Patrol conducted immigration enforcement operations in Evanston and Skokie on Friday, in an emailed statement to The Daily. The spokesperson said the operations culminated in the arrest of at least eight individuals, including both protesting citizens and those they said lacked legal status.
The activity led to ETHS enacting a closed campus protocol around 11:45 a.m., Superintendent Marcus Campbell wrote in an email to parents. The email stated that students were required to remain on campus during lunch and free periods.
Campbell emphasized there was no federal enforcement activity occurring on campus. However, the parent said the federal presence felt more threatening because of its proximity to local schools.
“When I found out about my son’s school, I got fiercely angry because I’m like, ‘Oh no, no, no, you’re not f–king with my kid,’” the parent said. “I knew what was going on, but now it’s my kids.”
ETHS parent Jennifer Bellis said the school asked parents to get out of their cars to pick up their students that day and to actively “be a presence.”
In a second Friday email to parents, Campbell said families’ presence at dismissal would “support the sense of safety for all students.”
Bellis said her morning began with sights of helicopters hovering over her house and three black SUVs parked on the street. According to a video she provided to The Daily, federal immigration agents detained two workers — who she said were fixing her neighbor’s sprinkler system — put them into the cars and drove off.
“It literally looked like a kidnapping,” Bellis said. “Their phones were on the ground, their van doors were open, the sprinklers were still going. What was so upsetting is there’s no communication. It’s just find them, tackle them and then put them in the SUV.”
As the day progressed, the fear and confusion spread to ETHS.
Bellis said her daughter texted her as the high school enacted its closed campus protocol.
“She’s like, ‘Mom, we’re on lockdown. What is happening? We hear helicopters all over,’” Bellis said. “I said, ‘ICE is in the area. They’re just full on attacking Evanston. You’re safe inside. Just go about your day, and then I’ll pick you up when it’s time.’”
ETHS has sent out several emails over the past few weeks, keeping parents updated on what’s happening in the community and how the school is preparing for federal activity near or on campus.
Despite these efforts, Miten Patel, an AP U.S. Government and Politics teacher at ETHS, said that many students and staff are “on edge” because of federal immigration agents’ presence in the city.
“There is genuine fear about what is going to happen next and how that is going to impact them, their neighbors, their community,” Patel said. “We’re afraid.”
Patel said that he’s been incorporating lessons about federal immigration enforcement and other national events into his classes, seeking to encourage discussions and teach students to “talk about these very timely issues properly.”
He emphasized that while he believes democracy will prevail, he’s deeply concerned over what he termed its “erosion” by ICE’s actions.
“It’s unfortunate that I can say we don’t have to go too far from 1600 Dodge to see ICE activity play out in real life, to see the violations of civil liberties and civil rights play out in real life,” Patel said.
Another local parent, who requested anonymity for fear of retribution by federal immigration agents, encouraged other parents to give their kids Know Your Rights Cards, which detail how to handle interactions with ICE agents.
Several residents said that the federal operations on Halloween sparked fear and anxiety, for both their kids and themselves.
As a result of the Oct. 31 arrests, an Evanston resident who identifies herself as “brown” said that she now feels less comfortable being alone in her community.
“I haven’t really done morning walks,” she said. “It’s irrational because I don’t think ICE is going to be in the park where I walk, but I just feel scared. Really, really scared.”
She attended a community vigil on Saturday, an event that drew over 250 residents, to protest the Oct. 31 arrests.
She emphasized that every community member, regardless of background, needs to be involved.
“You need to be aware,” she said. “Whether you want to do something about it or not, don’t put your head in the sand and pretend like it’s not really that bad, because that’s how it slips out of our hands.”
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Email: [email protected]
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