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Groups protest ICE in Milwaukee
Construction is underway for a new U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Milwaukee. Left-leaning groups protested outside the site on Saturday.
MILWAUKEE - On Milwaukee's northwest side, construction is underway to convert an empty office space into a processing facility for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Groups protest
What they're saying:
The agency currently works out of a building on Milwaukee School of Engineering's campus. But left-leaning protesters said Saturday that if the agency is going to move, they want them to move out of the city altogether.
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"The will of the people has to be respected," said Christine Neumann-Ortiz, Voces de la Frontera executive director. "The millions of dollars that are being spent towards this can be better invested in ways that actually lift up our communities."
Left-leaning groups protest outside the site of planned ICE facility on Lake Park Drive
Angela Lang said her group B.L.O.C., which stands for Black Leaders Organizing for Communities, is paying close attention to the Trump administration's focus on deporting undocumented people – including the deployment of federal agents in major cities, like Chicago.
"We are not waiting for something to happen before we start protesting. We are resisting now and saying it’s not working here," she said.
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Lang said there's no reason those efforts could not happen in Milwaukee. It's why B.L.O.C. joined other left-leaning groups, like Voces de La Frontera, to organize the "ICE OUT OF MILWAUKEE" rally.
"We know that what’s happening across the country with ICE and policing and even with the National Guard, could spill over at any moment into our own communities, especially with this building," she said.
New Milwaukee ICE facility, records detail plans for northwest side
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is getting ready for a move to a new space on Milwaukee's northwest side, and city documents reveal details.
FOX6 News obtained records that show the currently empty office space on Lake Park Drive, southwest of 107th and Bradley, will be used to process immigrants and not for detention.
It's located in Milwaukee's 9th District, where Ald. Larresa Taylor said it would only serve as a symbol of division. She views her district as one of opportunity, but not for neighbors like ICE.
"Just having that ability to pull families apart is not a good thing, and especially not at a time like this when there's so much uncertainty," she said.
When will ICE move?
The other side:
FOX6 News sent a number of questions to ICE asking for comment on this story, such as when it plans to move in and what operations would look like. We did not receive a response by the deadline for this story.
The Source: FOX6 News spoke to people at Saturday's protest, reached out to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for comment, and reviewed documents obtained via an open records request with the City of Milwaukee.