Over 30 Evanston community members protested in front of the AT&T storefront on Chicago Avenue on Sunday, calling for the company to drop its contract with the Department of Homeland Security.
The protest was one of 18 statewide protests Sunday against AT&T’s contracts. The demonstration comes as Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection agents have been in Evanston, Chicago and surrounding areas as part of ICE’s Operation Midway Blitz, first announced in early September.
AT&T has been under a 10-year $146 million contract with DHS since March 2024. The contract asks that AT&T provide DHS with Government Emergency Telecommunications Service and Wireless Priority Service, both of which are White House-directed cellular communication services that provide mission-critical priority calling for government personnel.
The Catalyst for Democracy Team at the Unitarian Church of Evanston and Indivisible Evanston co-planned the demonstration
“We hope to get AT&T’s attention, and get into dialogue with them would be the best, and convince them to cancel these contracts,” said Michael Skilton, a leader on the Catalyst for Democracy Team.
At the beginning of the protest, Evanston resident Steve Serikaku (SESP M.S. ’74) said protesters demanded that AT&T drop contracts with the DHS, ICE and CBP, and asked community members not to buy or upgrade any AT&T products or plans until the contracts are dropped. During the protest, Skilton circulated a pledge from People’s Action, in which community members vowed to meet these demands.
AT&T did not respond to a request for comment about the protests.
Protesters held signs with phrases like, “AT&T puts people over profit,” “AT&T stop enabling ICE” and “AT&T cancel ICE or we cancel AT&T” as they echoed chants calling for AT&T to drop the contracts, rang cow bells in support and sang songs like “We Shall Not Be Moved.”
Janelle Brittain, another member of the United Church of Evanston, said she attended the protest because she has seen immigrant families fear for their lives.
“Everyone is on edge, and we’re stressed. We feel like we no longer have the safety that we took for granted. But on the other hand, on the positive side, it’s brought us together,” Brittain said.
Drivers, bikers and passersby gave honks and shouts of approval as they passed the protest. Some took flyers with a QR code to the petition on them.
In his speech, Serikaku talked about ICE’s presence in the community and AT&T’s attachment to it. He added that AT&T was “profiting off” ICE’s actions within Illinois.
“We side with love,” Serikaku said. “We side with what is good for all. We are asking AT&T to do the same.”
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