Why some Chicago veterans are saying 'no' to President Trump
Why some Chicago veterans are saying 'no' to President Trump
As our nation pauses to honor the men and women who have served in the armed services, a number of veterans plan to take advantage of the Veterans Day holiday to protest the Commander-in-Chief’s use of the immigration agents on the streets of Chicago.
CHICAGO - As our nation pauses to honor the men and women who have served in the armed services, a number of veterans plan to take advantage of the Veterans Day holiday to protest the Commander-in-Chief’s use of the immigration agents on the streets of Chicago.
Arti Walker-Peddakotla is a U.S. Army veteran and member of the advocacy group ABOUT FACE—VETERANS AGAINST THE WAR.
"Given the fact that ICE is occupying our community and in some communities, we have military and National Guard members occupying our communities, veterans really needed to stand together with working-class people and speak out against this administration," he said.
"Vets Say No" rallies are planned in Chicago as well as in cities across the country to stand against not only the use of the military in immigration actions, but also the tactics of ICE and Border Patrol agents on immigrants and citizens alike.
"As veterans, we sign up to really protect everyone, and no one is being protected by this administration’s tactics," Walker-Peddakotla said. "No one is being made safer. In fact, our communities are made more unsafe by what ICE is doing and what the military is doing on our streets."
Concern is not limited to just veterans.
In the days and weeks after Trump ordered the National Guard into Los Angeles, active duty service members were no longer staying quiet about potential deployments.
"Even after that first National Guard deployment we saw an increase in active duty service and National Guard service members reaching not only out to us at ABOUT FACE AGAINST THE WAR but also to groups like the G.I. Rights Hotline and just asking what are my rights in this moment?" said Walker-Peddakotla.
Meanwhile on Monday, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) along with 155 Senate and House Democrats filed an amicas brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to deny Trump’s request to pause the temporary restraining order on deploying National Guard troops in Illinois.