TPUSA leader demands action after UChicago professor’s arrest at anti-ICE rally

The president of the University of Chicago’s Turning Point USA department is seeking sanctions against a faculty member who was arrested on suspicion of violent crime at an anti-ICE rally on Oct. 3.

“Professor Eman Abdelhadi’s history of inflammatory and anti-American rhetoric is extremely concerning. Students deserve a safe and open campus environment where they can express their views without fear of intimidation or retaliation from faculty,” Tyler Shasteen told Fox News Digital.

Abdelhadi, an associate professor in the school’s Department of Comparative Human Development, was arrested Oct. 3 and charged with two counts of aggravated battery on a government employee and two misdemeanor counts of resisting/obstructing the peace stemming from a rally outside a Broadview, Illinois ICE facility.

UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO CONDEMNS VIOLENCE BUT AVOIDS QUESTIONS ABOUT PROFESSOR ARRESTED IN FIGHTING ICE RIOTS

Rallies, some of which turned violent, have been going on here for weeks.

“Professor Abdelhadi’s statements openly supporting violence are unacceptable and undermine the safety and well-being of our community,” Shasteen said. “I call on the University of Chicago to reconsider its position and take responsibility for any actions that violate university policy or the law.”

Last week, the school condemned the violence but resisted answering questions about whether Abdhelhadi had been disciplined.

Abdulhadi also remained largely silent. But he thanked his supporters at Bluesky earlier last week.

“Thank you very much to everyone for the messages of love and support,” he said on the platform. “I feel empowered by your presence in my life and in the world. I continue to think of all our neighbors and brothers and sisters (hundreds in Chicago alone) who are detained in horrific unknown facilities. We owe them resistance.”

Police clash with demonstrators during a protest outside an immigration processing and detention center in Broadview, Illinois, on October 03, 2025. The site has been the target of frequent protests as federal law enforcement continues Operation Midway Blitz in the Chicago area, an operation designed to capture and deport undocumented immigrants living in the area. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

CHICAGO’S FAR LEFT UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR ACCUSED OF VIOLENT CRIMES DURING BROADVIEW ANTI-ICE RIOTS

Just a day before his arrest, he accused ICE of “terrorizing our communities” in a far-left podcast.

“I mean, in Broadview, ICE is setting up shop in our backyard. They’re just brazenly using community resources to terrorize that same community,” he said.

He also called for resistance and harshly criticized those he believed were not taking extreme enough action.

“At this point, you are either on the side that protects our neighbors, our community, or you are on the side of this administration. There is no neutral ground right now. There is no left center. You either resist or you are complicit,” he said.

He also criticized his employer at the Socialism 2025 conference held earlier this year.

“F— the University of Chicago, it’s a bad thing, you know, it’s a colonialist host. Like, why would I put some of my political energy into this area? I have a little bit of disdain for people who spend their time doing this,” he said on a panel during the far-left meeting.

A demonstrator is detained as people protest outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Broadview facility in Chicago, Illinois, October 3, 2025. (Jim Vondruska/Reuters)

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“It turns out I work for one of the largest employers in the city of Chicago. I work in a place that has a landlord, a health care provider, a police force, but they are, and it’s a place where I have access to thousands of people that I can potentially organize… that’s actually where I need to build power. That’s a possible structural lever,” he said.

The University of Chicago and Abdelhadi did not respond to requests for comment.