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Huge border Patrol Recent Saturday Morning Attendance chicagoThe Little Village neighborhood doesn’t faze Ofelia Herrera, even though she and her husband are there United States of America Illegally.
He waited for the agents to go a few blocks away, then opened their stand, which served Mexican-style corn on the cob and “aguas frescas” flavored with cucumbers, pineapple and strawberries. mexican immigrant community, as they have done for 18 years. Sirens continued to sound throughout the chaotic day as Chicago police responded to Border Patrol calls for help and encountered protesters.
Herrera, 47, and Rafael Hernandez, 44, have refused to change their routines during an immigration enforcement crackdown in Chicago that has forced many people without legal status to stay home since it began in early September. Even some American citizens of Latino heritage are afraid to go out.
The couple say working not only pays the bills but also helps stave off depression, making them stand out from others suffering from fear in Chicago’s immigrant communities.
“The only thing you can do is have faith in God and not be afraid,” Herrera said in an interview at the couple’s South Side house, which was already decorated with Christmas decorations just days after Halloween. “Fear leads to depression and other things. At the end of the day, they don’t demoralize you Mexico But you are sick with depression and other things because you did not believe in God.
Hernandez agreed. “We know people who have become depressed. They don’t leave the house. It’s very sad.”
From desert treks in Arizona to homeowners in Chicago
The couple’s Little Village food stand, decorated with American flags, is in a bustling area frequented by the Border Patrol. The two-lane commercial thoroughfare is lined with family-owned restaurants serving birria and chilaquiles, and clothing stores displaying Mexican sports team jerseys and white dresses for quinceañera parties – a coming-of-age celebration for 15-year-old girls in Latino families.
Vendors sell cut fruits and clay pots from parked vehicles. The sounds of ranchera music emanating from cars and stores add to the festive atmosphere, attracting Mexican immigrant visitors from throughout Chicago and beyond. A family from Waterloo, Iowa, was munching on corn soaked in mayonnaise, cotija cheese, lemon and chili powder at the couple’s stand under a cool drizzle.
Many of the couple’s friends have not gone out for more than two months. That fear has sparked a grassroots effort to buy off street vendors, allowing them to go home early and avoid public exposure.
Despite the immigration crackdown, sidewalk traffic on 26th Street is lively compared to many commercial areas of Chicago. It is surrounded by barber shops, groceries and other businesses that have signs in Spanish and English asking immigration officials to stay away unless they have a court warrant.
The couple knows people who were arrested by heavily armed agents asking about their legal status – an egg seller here, a tamale seller there. He described the sting of tear gas fired by agents at protesters in a shopping center parking lot last month.
Many immigrants, even those with some legal status, are reluctant to speak to journalists, especially if identified by name, out of fear that it could lead to deportation. Herrera and Hernandez say they are eager to share their story to better understand how the Trump administration’s push for mass deportations is playing out.
Herrera crossed the border in 2004, with her two children, now adults, living in Chicago. Hernandez made the trip in 2005. The two had paid smugglers thousands of dollars for the day-long trip through the Arizona desert. Acquaintances inspired him to move to Chicago, the second largest US destination for Mexican immigrants after Los Angeles.
The two met while working at a Mexican restaurant in Little Village. They have two American-born children; Their 10-year-old son speaks little Spanish and is largely oblivious to the immigration action.
Their 16-year-old daughter fears long-term detention versus the possibility of her parents being deported to Mexico.
The couple took a class at City Hall for municipal certification to become street food vendors and bought a house in 2017 for $39,000 that was in desperate need of repairs.
On weekdays from 3 pm to 9 pm he serves tacos and burritos from a yellow truck in the dirt driveway of his home in Englewood, a predominantly black neighborhood and one of the poorest in Chicago. Once a thriving shopping district, parts of the neighborhood have fallen into disrepair with dilapidated buildings. Crime is happening continuously.
On weekends they go to Little Village, where they work 11-hour days.
Customers scared as sales drop after immigration raids
They have thought about trying to obtain legal status but they do not have a strong case and could never afford a lawyer. He obtained an Illinois driver’s license. They say they paid taxes, stayed out of trouble and generally lived without fear of deportation.
“Chicago is nice,” Hernandez said. “Crime is hard but Chicago is wonderful. There are a lot of opportunities for those of us who are immigrants. It’s sad what’s happening.”
Herrera said the pair’s sales have fallen about 75% since the Trump administration launched “Operation Midway Blitz” in Chicago on Sept. 8. Like almost everyone else he knows, his phone constantly alerts him where immigration officials are making arrests and to stay away.
Authorities appear to be arresting “everybody,” Hernandez said, even though the administration claims it is taking action against “the worst of the worst.” More than 70% of people in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in the 12-month period through September had not been convicted of a crime in the US.
US officials say they are giving priority to criminals but anyone living in the country illegally can be arrested. This also includes street vendors, according to Gregory Bovino, a Border Patrol officer who has led enforcement operations in Los Angeles, Chicago and now, Charlotte, North Carolina.
“Those guys are hurting American businesses, is that right?” Bovino, a frequent visitor to Chicago’s Little Village, said in a recent interview. “Absolutely not. That’s why we have immigration laws in the first place.”
The couple’s memories of how the COVID-19 pandemic kept them inside are reminders to stay active, allowing for only small adjustments. They had recently gone to Little Village to buy supplies for their business when news broke on social networks that Bovino was in the area making arrests. They decided to shop in another neighborhood.
They have been back to Mexico only once in more than 20 years, a family trip in 2012 that included crossing the border illegally in Eagle Pass, Texas. They want to stay in Chicago but say they are prepared to return to Mexico if arrested. They will bring their US citizen children with them.
“People are scared because their lives are at stake here, their children are at stake, including us,” Herrera said. “We don’t want to go to Mexico, but if we have to, we’ll go. What else is there to do?”