Protesters clash with police as ICE raids surge across Phoenix metro area
Tensions erupted between immigrant rights advocates and Peoria police officers on Tuesday, amid a surge in Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity across the Valley.
Federal officials with Homeland Security Investigations, a division within ICE, descended on a Peoria neighborhood Tuesday morning. A neighbor told the Arizona Mirror they witnessed multiple agents use flash bangs and a battering ram to enter the house. Yasmeen Pitts O'Keefe, a spokesperson for HSI, said the case involved narcotics and human smuggling, and that one person was arrested on federal charges and another was turned over to immigration officials.
Peoria Police Department vehicles blocked off both ends of the street and officers kept watch as protestors, drawn by social media alerts, lined the sidewalks nearby. A confrontation between Peoria PD and opponents led to one person being subdued with a Taser and arrested.
Chantil Martinez, who has lived in nearby Glendale her whole life, said she sympathizes with local police officers who likely had no choice in their assignments. But she was quick to say that, while she has some level of trust in local police officers, that same trust doesn't extend to federal officials. The raids carried out by ICE agents, she said, are comparable to discriminatory arrests carried out in Nazi Germany.
'It's almost like knocking on the doors back in the day and saying: 'Are you a Jew?' It's not OK,' she said.
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Another protester, Erika, told the Arizona Mirror that she heard about the presence of federal agents on her way back from a doctor's appointment via a Tiktok livestream, and drove to the area to offer her support. Her three children, ranging in ages from 1 to 16 years old, stood next to her on the sidewalk in the blistering, triple-digit heat. Erika, who was unwilling to give her last name because she feared retaliation, said she's been monitoring the Los Angeles ICE raids and she worries about the same happening in Arizona.
'We all have family members, or people we know, who would be affected,' she said.
A spokesperson with the Peoria Police Department said the department only managed traffic control in the area while federal officials conducted a drug-related investigation, and that 'false narratives' about it being related to immigration enforcement led to the protest.
Immigrant advocacy organizations in Phoenix have been on red alert in the wake of ICE's workplace raids in Los Angeles, which have seen more than 40 people detained, and the subsequent protests. The Trump administration has increasingly sought to ramp up deportations, with Homeland Security Advisor Stephen Miller pushing for 3,000 arrests a day. While enforcement actions in Phoenix have recently centered around migrants attending hearings at the city's immigration court, pro-immigrant groups were alarmed by information that ICE raids are expected to be conducted across the Phoenix metro area this week.
That information appeared to bear out: Over just the past few days, ICE agents have been spotted in multiple locations across the Valley. And hours before the arrests in Peoria, three men in a truck carrying construction materials were detained at a gas station at 27th Avenue and Indian School Road, according to the Phoenix New Times.
Roughly 50 protesters, including members from pro-immigrant groups, gathered to oppose the HSI operation in Peoria and were particularly critical of Peoria PD's presence. As the Trump administration's hostility towards undocumented people has reached new heights, scrutiny about the relationship between federal immigration officials and local law enforcement departments has increased. One protester yelled 'You're a traitor, you betrayed your community,' at a Peoria police officer, while another shouted, 'This isn't what our taxes are for!' into a bullhorn.
Erika noted that she was upset about Peoria PD's collaboration, saying it gave her doubts about calling them for help in the future.
'It makes me have less trust in them now,' she said. 'It makes you question where to turn when you need help.'
In a statement issued shortly after the protest ended, the Phoenix Police Department sought to distance itself from ICE's increased activity in the Valley while at the same time encouraging peaceful demonstrations. Donna Rossi, a spokeswoman for the department, said Phoenix PD is not involved in the federal government's recent enforcement actions. Rossi also acknowledged that the actions of federal immigration authorities can 'evoke fear or other strong emotions,' but urged protesters to express those emotions in peaceful ways.
'The Department fully recognizes and respects the constitutional rights of all to peaceably assemble and exercise free speech,' Rossi said in a written statement. 'We encourage all community members to express their views in a peaceful and lawful manner, and we remain committed to supporting safe and respectful demonstrations.'
The Phoenix City Council is currently considering an initiative proposed by immigrant rights advocates for the Phoenix Police Department to stop working with ICE. According to reporting from the Arizona Republic, the majority of arrests in the metro area that end in deportations are conducted by Phoenix police.
At one point during the protest, a scuffle broke out between police officers and the crowd. Three officers surrounded a protester, who ended up on the ground after officers deployed a Taser. The scene was chaotic, with some in the crowd converging on the officers as the detained protester was escorted to a police vehicle while other activists urged them to hang back. At least half of the group stayed apart from the altercation.
In a video posted to social media, a water bottle can be seen flying past the police officers who surrounded the protester on the ground. At least one immigrant advocate, Clarissa Vela, the co-founder of the People First Project, was struck by a rock in her leg.
'This is what they want — they want us to be criminals,' Vela shouted through a bullhorn as she tried, unsuccessfully, to convince the crowd to calm down.
According to a statement issued by the Peoria Police Department, an officer was intentionally blocked by two protesters and assaulted by another, who was then subdued and arrested.
In a post on social media site X, formerly Twitter, Gov. Katie Hobbs criticized the alleged assault and said her office has directed the Arizona Department of Public Safety to ensure local law enforcement agencies have the support they need.
'I have directed @Arizona_DPS to reach out to local law enforcement to ensure needs are met and we maintain order in the community. The State of Arizona is prepared to assist the City of Peoria and any other local law enforcement entities with necessary resources to keep our communities safe,' she wrote. 'Violence is completely unacceptable, and I urge any protesters to remain peaceful.'
Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell, too, denounced the incident.
'An attack on a police officer is never appropriate,' she said in a written statement. 'These men and women risk their own lives and safety to do the job we've asked them to do.'
As law enforcement on the ground clashed with the crowd, a Department of Homeland Security Blackhawk helicopter circled above.
The helicopter is primarily used by U.S. Customs and Border Protection where it has been flown for a variety of missions, including conducting security for the Super Bowl. The helicopter later landed at the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway airport, the operational headquarters for ICE Air and where deportation flights are taking place.
The helicopter also circled the Arrowhead Towne Center in Glendale as well as the Peoria Sports Complex prior to making its way to the area near 69th Avenue and West North Lane.
***UPDATED: This story has been updated with additional information.
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