Cities across the U.S. are halting cultural events out of concern for potential ICE raids and forced removals
Rebooting Cultural Celebrations: Navigating the New Normal
For decades, Chicago's Little Village neighborhood enthusiastically embraced Cinco de Mayo with a grand parade and festival. However, this year, the traditional festivities have ceased.Like Chicago, numerous other communities across the country have scaled back or canceled cultural events due to escalating tensions around immigration under President Donald Trump's administration.
Fear amongst Latinos, regardless of their immigration status, has grown significantly. With increased ICE raids in cities like Chicago, and Trump's authorization for ICE to target schools and church gatherings, many are apprehensive about attending public events and even services at their houses of worship.
Since the administration's crackdown, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has reportedly detained nearly 66,500 undocumented immigrants and deported around 65,600 in the president's first 100 days.
Amidst this climate of uncertainty, Hector Escobar, president of the Casa Puebla and Cermak Road Chamber of Commerce, expressed his concerns: "We don't want to take a chance and put our community at risk. It's a loss economically, but we put safety over money."
These concerns extend beyond the Little Village community—organizers in Philadelphia chose to cancel their annual El Carnaval de Puebla festival, fearing that ICE officers might target festival-goers. Meanwhile, in central Oregon, organizers called off the annual Latino Fest due to pressure from immigration authorities.
Such decisions reveal a deeply rooted fear in immigrants, some of whom are legal or have pending citizenship applications. Daniel Altamirano Hernandez, executive advisor of policy & partnerships for the Latino Community Association in Oregon, said, "It becomes an environment where folks are judged based on the color of their skin or the language they use, which doesn't necessarily correlate with someone's immigration status."
Clarissa Martinez De Castro, vice president of the Latino Vote Initiative at UnidosUS, acknowledges the challenges faced by communities and encourages vigilance: "When the administration is taking actions that fail to distinguish, that sends a message to the community that the community as a whole is in the crosshairs for actions that, already, some courts have said are illegal."
However, it's not just the Latino community grappling with these issues. Cultural events celebrating African-American heritage, like Juneteenth, have also faced logistical challenges due to the Trump administration's efforts to diminish diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
In New Jersey, the annual Juneteenth celebration faced relocation due to miscommunication and perceived political bias. Reggie Johnson, president of the NAACP Metuchen Edison Piscataway Area Branch, explained, "The contractors misinterpreted our event as a DEI initiative, so they didn't want to risk having it and losing it because of Trump's interpretation of Juneteenth."
Despite the challenges, community organizers remain resolute, emphasizing the importance of recognizing and healing from their collective histories. Norman Harris, the festival's lead organizer in Denver, reassured, "We are a community and one of our founding values is resilience and unity. So, we thoroughly believe that we can overcome the challenges that we are facing."
- The scaling back or cancellation of cultural events, such as parades and festivals, has become a common trend in numerous communities, misinterpreted as a response to escalating tensions around immigration under President Trump's administration.
- The fear among Hispanics, regardless of their immigration status, has grown significantly due to increased ICE raids and Trump's authorization for ICE to target schools and church gatherings, causing apprehension about attending public events and even services at their houses of worship.
- War-and-conflicts and crime-and-justice issues are not the only ones being battled; political tensions have given rise to a climate of uncertainty, threatening the celebration of general-news events, like Cinco de Mayo and Juneteenth.
- The administration's crackdown on immigration has led to a deep rooted fear in immigrants, some of whom are legal or have pending citizenship applications, as they are judged based on the color of their skin or the language they use, a situation that Daniel Altamirano Hernandez, executive advisor of policy & partnerships for the Latino Community Association in Oregon, finds concerning.
- In the face of challenges, community organizers emphasize the importance of recognizing and healing from their collective histories, resolute that they can overcome the obstacles that threaten their cultural celebrations, much like Juneteenth, which despite facing logistical challenges due to perceived political bias, will continue to be celebrated as a symbol of resilience and unity.
