TAMPA, Fla. – Protesters set up tents Thursday night on the sidewalk outside Tampa’s office of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
The protesters said Friday morning they aren’t leaving anytime soon.
The group – part of a larger, organized group called Occupy ICE – has a list of demands, which includes abolishing ICE.
"We're asking the question: is the country any safer, any kinder, any more humane, have we advanced in any kind of way since 2003 when ICE was founded," said Dezeray Lyn, a demonstrator with Love Has No Borders.
"Can we abolish this blight on our community so we can move forward and figure out how to preserve dignity and keep people safe?"
The political push to abolish the federal agency, which was created in 2003 after 9/11 to arrest and remove undocumented immigrants, has been amplified by similar protests happening in recent weeks in cities across the country.
Friday morning, both federal and local police were outside of Tampa’s Homeland Security and ICE agency. Demonstrations remained peaceful as some drivers passing by honked their horns in a show of solidarity.
In addition to their most radical demand to abolish ICE, protesters say they want to:
- Put an end to deportations to war-torn countries.
- Stop the popular partnerships between local sheriff's offices and ICE allowing arrested undocumented immigrants to be detained longer than usual.
- Implement more oversight to investigate complaints against the agency.
“They’re prepared to be here for multiple weeks," said protester Zulema Ramos. “At the end of the day, this isn’t just a political stance, this is individual human lives on the line."
Critics of the movement argue ICE has been a successful force in the fight against gang violence and terrorism.
President Trump has told Democrats who support the idea they're "digging their own graves." A group of progressive House Democrats introduced a bill earlier this month that would axe the agency within one year, although the legislation has little to no chance of becoming law.
Tammy Spicer, public affairs officer for ICE in Tampa issued the following statement:
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) fully respects the Constitutional rights of all persons to peacefully express their opinions. That said, ICE remains committed to performing its immigration enforcement mission consistent with federal law and agency policy.
In other cities, like Portland, Ore. and Louisville, Ky., Occupy ICE demonstrators have been forced to pick up and clear out their camps. A spokesperson for Tampa police said at this point they see no problem with where protesters are set up because they aren't causing disruptions or blocking anything.
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