New Orleans braces for Trump’s immigration crackdown: ‘We have rights’ | New Orleans
As Donald Trump pursues his agenda of mass deportations and a sweeping federal crackdown on immigrants in Democratic-led cities, New Orleanians are preparing for a major deployment of U.S. border patrol officers to the city.
On the contrary falling crimeAs many as 250 federal agents are expected to descend on New Orleans to break ground on “Operation Swamp Sweep.” Associated Press reported It will launch Dec. 1 in southeast Louisiana and Mississippi with a goal of arresting 5,000 people.
Trump had planned to send in federal troops in September when he declared that New Orleans had a “crime problem,” adding: “We’ll fix this in two weeks.” The city’s violent crime rate is actually 20% lower than last yearIncluding a historic drop in the number of murders.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) operation will be led by senior border patrol commander Gregory Bovino. Bovino has led aggressive campaigns in Los Angeles, Chicago and now Charlotte and other North Carolina cities; The crackdown there has triggered widespread protests and sometimes volatile interactions between federal agents and protesters over aggressive arrest tactics.
In Chicago, activists held demonstrations and filed lawsuits over excessive use of force, including tear gas and pepper spray, and arrests.
Activists in Charlotte have already viewed their actions as a plan, and now, following weeks of reports of raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) circulating New Orleans residents across the greater metropolitan area are also preparing to fight back. Both border patrol officers from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and ICE agents fall under the DHS umbrella.
Area residents are sharing plans to report ICE sightings, alert landscapers and other manual workers to the threat of enforcement, and help escort children to and from school when ICE is in the area. They also rally around neighbors believed to be under threat — often because they don’t have papers or because the Trump administration no longer recognizes a temporary status granted under the Biden administration — through community messaging, social media and tip-offs — literally blowing their whistles in the street if officers are believed to be approaching.
Construction workers were reportedly instructed to stay home Friday if Border Patrol arrived that early, and businesses such as restaurants and gas stations were urged not to serve ICE officers.
Helena Moreno, the Mexican-American elected mayor of New Orleans, told the AP there is “a lot of fear” in the city and that she is working to ensure people who may be targeted by federal agents know their legal rights. “I’m very concerned about the violation of due process, I’m very concerned about racial profiling,” he said.
Local immigrant advocacy group Unión Migrante is already posting about ICE sightings and sharing resources in English and Spanish on its social media pages. It also holds regular “Know Your Rights” workshops where people learn what protections they have during an immigration investigation, what to do if pulled over in a car by an agent, how to legally film ICE officers and police, and legal advice from immigration attorneys.
Volunteer Alfredo Salazar said the workshops are vital as inspections increase across the region. “I’m Latino and I’m worried I might be arrested for that,” he told local TV station Fox 8. “Not only me, but thousands of people here appear to be Latinx. So we have to educate people that we have rights to defend ourselves and freedom of expression.”
The city is known for its rich mix of French, Spanish, African, Native American and Asian cultures, and 14% of the metropolitan foreign-born population is Latino. In Kenner, a suburb of New Orleans, 13 people were arrested in a raid on a boat earlier this month; This rate is the highest in the state at 30%.
Rachel Taber, who is also an advocate and organizer for Unión Migrante, told news site NOLA.com that immigrants and family members are contacting lawyers, giving people powers of attorney in case they are detained, and finding passports if they need to travel to reunite with relatives.
The mission has the enthusiastic support of Louisiana’s Republican governor, Jeff Landry, a staunch Trump ally. Jeff Landry has made a strong push to align state policy with comprehensive federal immigration efforts, targeting New Orleans’ immigration policies to make enforcement a priority.
The GOP-dominated state legislature passed a law threatening prison time for law enforcement officials who delay or ignore federal enforcement efforts. Another measure gives government agencies the power to verify, track and report people illegally receiving government services in the country. Another prohibits city policies that prohibit cooperation with federal immigration agencies.
In September, Landry requested the deployment of the national guard to New Orleans, even though violent crime had decreased and federal troops were unnecessary, the city’s elected leaders said. The Guardian has contacted Landry’s office for comment.
Meanwhile, the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) was released on Wednesday from a federal reform agreement that long protected its officers from involvement in immigration enforcement. NOPD Chief Anne Kirkpatrick told WBOK radio earlier this week that officers would cooperate with federal agents but not in raids or deportations.
“We will not participate in the removal, but we will always be there,” he said. “They are coming, and I will be a collaborator. But I also want to emphasize this to our society: Being undocumented is illegal in our country. Being illegal is not a crime.”
DHS deputy secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement: “DHS enforces national laws across the country every day. We are not discussing future or potential operations.”
