U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been the topic of much controversy since the beginning of Donald Trump’s presidency. Their presence in many large cities has led to widespread protest and pushback, and it has been no different in their latest operation: “Charlotte’s Web.” Agents have been seen across Charlotte, and as of recently, on the campus of UNC Charlotte, too.
The GH Falcon interviewed two students at UNC Charlotte, both of whom shall remain anonymous, about ICE’s presence in Charlotte and specifically on their school campus. When asked about when they first heard about ICE coming to Charlotte, they both discussed how they heard of the operation on the weekend of Nov. 15-16. One of the students discussed how, “Not much was known about when they were coming or how many agents were coming.” The other student reiterated this, showing the unclear nature of ICE’s arrival and the doubt they immediately sowed.
At UNC Charlotte specifically, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers have limitations on where they can go and what they can do. One of the students discussed how, “ICE cannot enter classrooms and dorms without a warrant. If they do approach a student or any faculty member, we all need to follow university protocol.”
Students at UNC Charlotte received word from the university about what to do in an encounter with ICE. To this, one of the students stated, “We got an email from the chancellor explaining that if someone came to me claiming to be an ICE agent, we had to tell them to wait so that we could follow campus protocol.” They then shared, “We would then need to call campus police and have them verify the person.”
So far, over 130 arrests have already been made in Charlotte, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Both students discussed the arrests they heard about, such as one arrest near their dorm and another within the city of Charlotte.
The students both discussed how they felt with ICE on their college campus. One discussed how, “My friends and I all stay home unless we have to go to classes. I feel like I can’t even step out of my own dorm and roam around campus,” while the other said, “I don’t feel safe at all. I’m nervous to go anywhere outside of campus.” ICE’s presence has caused widespread fear across Charlotte, seen through actions such as shops shutting down across the campus and city due to fear of prosecution.
In acts of pushback against ICE’s presence in Charlotte, protests marching downtown have been held, high school students have organized demonstrations and communities have raised awareness and worked to prepare residents, such as blowing a whistle to warn about ICE’s presence.
ICE’s operations in Charlotte mark another step in President Trump’s push to deport illegal immigrants, but many of the controversial methods that they are using have instilled fear into everyone, including legal residents and citizens who reside in America. As they continue to move across the country, there continues to be protests, pushback, shutdowns, fear and more effects stemming from the hundreds of thousands of deportations that have already occurred.
