Protesters arrested, officers injured in clash outside Chicago-area immigration facility

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CHICAGO (AP) — Authorities arrested 21 protesters Friday and said four officers were injured outside a Chicago-area federal immigration facility that activists say functions as a de facto detention center and is plagued by inhumane conditions.

The Cook County Sheriff’s Office said most faced charges of obstruction, disorderly conduct, and walking on a highway. One also faced a charge of mob action. Their ages ranged from 23 to 67.

The office said the four officers were injured while trying to redirect protesters off a roadway and back behind a barrier. Two Broadview police officers and one Cook County Sheriff’s Police officer were taken to a hospital. The Sheriff’s Police officer sustained a lower leg injury and was treated and released. The Broadview Police Department said its officers’ injuries were not life threatening. An Illinois state trooper was treated at the scene.

Just moments before the clash, demonstrators were singing and chanting. Around 10 a.m., a large group, knowing they were going to be arrested, allegedly crossed the protest barrier and attempted to walk up toward the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility.

Some protesters carried signs reading, “God’s Love Knows No Borders” and “God Demands Freedom.” Some of them prayed. The crowd numbered about 300 before it began to disperse.

The facility in Broadview, Illinois, has been the site of frequent protests, particularly on Fridays, against a federal immigration crackdown dubbed “Operation Midway Blitz.” It has led to more than 3,200 arrests in the Chicago metropolitan area since September of people suspecting of violating immigration laws .

The aggressive tactics used by agents from Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have repeatedly come under fire through legal challenges as well as street protests.