On this edition of Your Call’s Media Roundtable, we’re discussing Caught in the Crackdown, a ProPublica/Frontline investigation that traces anti-ICE protests, and arrests stemming from federal immigration sweeps across the country.
According to Propublica, over the past 10 months, the Trump administration has made much of its success in sweeping through US cities, capturing unauthorized immigrants and arresting people who publicly oppose the operations, routinely accusing dissenters of being domestic terrorists or extremists. Federal agents have arrested hundreds of US citizens — including protesters and activists observing immigration enforcement operations, bystanders and, in some cases, the family members of people targeted for deportation. Less clear to the public is what has happened to those charged.
Guest:
A.C. Thompson, staff reporter for ProPublica covering hate crimes and racial extremism, and producer and correspondent for Frontline
Resources:
ProPublica: Caught in the Crackdown: As Arrests at Anti-ICE Protests Piled Up, Prosecutions Crumbled
The New York Times: His DNA Was Taken After His Arrest at an ICE Protest. Now, He’s Suing.
MPR News: After highly publicized arrests, feds dismiss a third of ICE protester charges