CHICAGO (WLS) — Concerns are running high in Chicago as undocumented families and small business owners prepare for next week when Donald Trump takes office as president. His border czar has promised mass deportations for people who are not in the country legally.
Those concerns range from the impact it may have on schools to how it could shut down food cart vendors.
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In the heart of Little Village, there are many hearts filled with anxious anticipation of how their lives might change next week if the Trump administration sends ICE agents to the Southwest Side, looking for undocumented immigrants to deport.
One food cart vender named Jerry, who was selling tamales Friday, was not worried for himself, but he is for his family and others in the community who depend on their small businesses to put food on their own table.
“I think a lot of food vendors are gonna get affected, like, because, like, a lot of people that are food vendors are undocumented,” Jerry said. “Like, I have papers, but my family doesn’t, is undocumented.”
There are also concerns about whether some parents might keep their children home from school when classes resume next Wednesday.
READ MORE | Suburban school districts try to calm immigrant community’s fears of mass deportations
Chicago Public Schools has already promised that undocumented students will be protected. The Chicago Teachers Union also taking a stand.
“We know Homeland Security Agents will be sent here to strike fear in the hearts of our students and our families and we are not standing for it,” CTU Vice President Jackson Potter said.
No one is sure when or where ICE agents might show up, but many in communities like Little Village will remain very cautious and concerned.
RELATED | Immigration activists hold protest in Pilsen against President-elect Trump’s deportation plans
One food cart vendor ABC7 spoke with remained anonymous because she’s undocumented. She and others believe the streets here could much less busy next week and beyond.
“The economy is going to go down, because there’s not a lot of people that are going to be coming out to buy our products,” she said. “And as well, we’re not going to come out because of the fear of the raids.”
Mayor Brandon Johnson, at an interfaith prayer breakfast honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, acknowledged the fears many families have about next week.
“But we cannot allow fear and panic to disrupt and to block our unwavering desire to see hope truly manifest,” Johnson said.
SEE ALSO | Aldermen seek to allow CPD to work with ICE to deport lawbreaking non-citizens
City leaders reaffirmed Chicago’s commitment to being a sanctuary city this week, but that won’t stop ICE agents from carrying out orders targeting Chicago that could come as soon as Monday.
More information from CPS on immigration guidance and students’ rights, click here.
Más información de CPS sobre orientación de inmigración y derechos de los estudiantes, haga clic aquí.
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