UIC students protest ICE terror

Chicago, IL – On January 13, over 40 students rallied on the University of Illinois Chicago campus in response to ICE’s murder of Renee Nicole Good, and to demand justice for all victims of ICE terror. Students responded to the national week of action by the National Students for a Democratic Society.

We’re ready to fight back

Gio Araujo, from New SDS at UIC, spoke on the importance of taking the lessons of 2025 into the new year. “We’re not going in blind, we’ve experienced a 2025 of ICE terror in our communities and have learned the tactics and strategies.”

Araujo continued, “We are going into the year ready to fight the Trump agenda!”

A member of Radical Public Health at UIC highlighted Good’s solidarity with her immigrant neighbors and the importance for white working people to not be consumed by ICE’s reactionary agenda.

“Filipinos both abroad and here in the United States face state-terror,” said Matt Martinez of Kabataan Alliance-MW. He spoke of 70-year-old Filipina grandmother, Tita Rebecca, who was kidnapped by ICE and secretly deported to the Philippines. Her family was not informed of the life-threatening flight.

Rodrigo Cortes Espinoza, a member of the student, staff and professor collective Sanctuary for All at UIC, stated, “I had someone say that we were being too loud, and that class was in session. That is exactly what the powers that be want you to do. They want you to keep your head down, and not prioritize fighting back against this terror!”

Espinoza encouraged students not involved in the student movement to get organized and join one of the progressive organizations on campus.

Angel Naranjo from the Freedom Road Socialist Organization spoke on continuing to build the broadest movement against Trump’s reactionary agenda, and making it, “ungovernable for them to deploy this terror on us!”

“With the recent signage of the HB 1312 bill which enacts protections for immigrants in settings such as court, hospitals, universities and daycares, we will continue pressure on administration in upholding and defending students by developing procedures in the case of ICE on campus,” stated Ile Cecilio from Mexican Students de Aztlan at UIC (MeSA), a group that last semester mobilized around 200 students after the kidnapping of two women on campus by ICE.

Cecilio concluded, “We will also continue to hold UIC administration accountable for the safety and protection of students and staff within campus!”

After the fiery speeches from the student organizations in the quad, students marched through campus, passing by the University Hall where admin resides. Drivers passing by honked and raised their fists up in solidarity with the students.

#ChicagoIL #IL #ImmigrantRights #ICE #StudentMovement #SDS #FRSO