This past Monday, ICE killed Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a 25-year-old Colombian man who was living in our sister state of Maine. He was fatally shot during a traffic stop. He was authorized to work in the U.S. He was not the target of ICE’s enforcement operation. He had a wife and small child. His final words before passing? “I tried to stop.”
A week prior, on July 7, ICE killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old Mexican man on his way to work in Houston, Texas. Once again, Lorenzo was not the target of the operation. He had a wife and three children. He was in the process of obtaining his legal status and had no criminal record. He was chased by an unmarked vehicle. Lorenzo lost his life. Three of the men he was driving to the job site were detained.
This uptick in fatal ICE shootings is no coincidence. ICE arrested a whopping 10,000 individuals over a five-day stretch at the end of June. With this recent summer surge, it’s apparent these federal agents are continuing to carry out the Trump administration’s mass deportations agenda, with more opportunities for deadly outcomes.
Vermonters are being impacted as well.
According to our partners at Migrant Justice, last week, three construction workers were pulled over and pulled out of their car by ICE in Middlebury, then a father and husband in Essex left for work and never returned. He is now in ICE detention, facing deportation.
A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision ruled that the Trump administration can end the Temporary Protected Status for Haitians and Syrians, a program that several dozen Vermont immigrants rely on for safety and support.
Feeling rage? Sadness? Overwhelmed? Us too. But there are a few things you can do to move that energy:
Tomorrow, 7/16: Stand with Migrant Justice, the May Day Strong Coalition, and others in Burlington for a march, rally, and vigil. Meet in front of the Burlington City Hall at 6 PM.
Sign up for action alerts and/or volunteer your time with Migrant Justice, as they continue working to build the voice, capacity, and power of the immigrant farmworker community in Vermont.
You may have noticed that we’ve been sharing a lot of information about upcoming events this summer. That’s because we believe that now more than ever, building community and coming together can help move us through ongoing hardship. Because the reality is, we have a lot more work to do when it comes to protecting our state from the harms of federal overreach.