Fifteen people were arrested this weekend outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) processing facility in Broadview, Illinois. Their alleged crime? Standing up against a system they believe is unjust.

These demonstrators joined tens of thousands of people nationwide in a peaceful protest calling for humane immigration policies and an end to fear-based deportation raids. But instead of being heard, many were met with criminal charges—misdemeanor resisting, disorderly conduct, and disobeying police orders. Most of these arrests happened after 6 p.m., when a newly imposed protest curfew went into effect. That curfew was established by Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson via executive order—despite the fact that the facility in question has been the site of prior violence by ICE agents, including the use of rubber bullets and tear gas against demonstrators.

The right to protest is protected by the First Amendment. These individuals were exercising that right in pursuit of justice for immigrants who face separation from their families and communities. Arresting peaceful protesters sends the wrong message—that challenging government actions will be punished, not protected.

We, the undersigned, are calling on the Cook County State’s Attorney and the Broadview Police Department to drop all charges against those arrested on Saturday and in the days leading up to it. 

This petition also calls on Mayor Katrina Thompson to reconsider the restrictive protest curfew and ensure that public safety policies do not become tools to suppress dissent.

These protesters were ordinary people taking a stand for vulnerable communities. Criminalizing them only deepens the injustice they came to oppose.

Sign this petition to stand with them—and to defend the right to protest in Broadview and beyond.