Community organizers and the Immigrant Justice Network of Massachusetts united for an ICE Watch event in Somerville earlier this week. ICE sightings and detainments have both been on the rise throughout the U.S., prompting community action. The detentions of Mahmoud Khalil and Rumeysa Ozturk are only two of the Trump administration’s recent assaults on free speech in the United States. In addition to cracking down on pro-Palestine voices, the administration has also increased its so-called anti-immigration efforts. ICE Watch hopes that a better-informed community will be a safer one.
Ozturk Detainment Prompts Somerville ICE Watch
The abduction of Rumeysa Ozturk is one of the highest-profile detainments but hardly the only one. It’s precisely because such detentions are on the rise that ICE Watch formed. One speaker at the event encouraged others to contact the Luce Defense Hotline to report ICE activities they might witness. The speaker described the Somerville ICE Watch network as a “grassroots collective of neighbors here in Somerville,” with no non-profit or governmental ties. Community members formed the organization about a month ago in response to Trump’s escalating anti-immigration and detention efforts.
A TikTok by rob2boston about the ICE Watch event in Somerville received supportive comments and over 500 likes. “This is beautiful. Keep fighting,” said one commenter. Resources like the Luce Defense Hotline will make that fight much easier, so Somerville seems off to a good start. Another commenter shared their thoughts on the ICE Watch gathering, saying,
Thank you so much for showing out! This is bravery, and a community united [Sic]
Authoritarian regimes thrive on silence and passivity. Organizing, talking, and sharing resources are all powerful means of resistance. As disturbing as it is that organizations like Somerville Ice Watch are necessary, it’s heartening to see community members step up. Mahmoud Khalil, Rumeysa Ozturk, and many others have yet to come home. Now, communities like Somerville are fighting to make sure more aren’t taken.
