Three protesters arrested as demonstrators block vehicle at key immigration building near Chicago

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CHICAGO (AP) — Protesters tried to block vehicles Friday outside a federal immigration enforcement building in suburban Chicago, leading to a confrontation with authorities who arrested three people and used a chemical agent to disperse the crowd.

The protest is part of steady pushback against an immigration enforcement surge focused on Chicago and surrounding communities, which has put more federal agents on the streets charged with delivering on President Donald Trump’s promise of mass deportations. A top immigration official said Friday that more than 400 people have been arrested as part of an operation that launched just under two weeks ago.

Friday’s protest included dozens of people carrying American flags and signs with the words “Hands off Chicago.” Some participants tried to block a car from exiting the facility’s yard and were met with federal officers who deployed chemical agents that released white clouds that drove the protesters back, according to videos taken outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Broadview, about 12 miles (19 kilometers) west of Chicago.

Three people were taken into custody, ICE Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement to The Associated Press.

The Broadview site is a two-story building that has been used to temporarily hold immigrants before they’re detained or deported. Its windows have been covered with wood boards for weeks. Protesters have regularly gathered there, including Catholic nuns who pray during vigils.

Friday’s protest drew advocates, residents and Democratic officials or politicians — several of whom were among the protest crowd affected by the officers’ response.

Kat Abughazaleh, a congressional candidate who has joined protesters on several days, told the AP that she was thrown on the ground by federal agents and hit with tear gas Friday as she stood arm-in-arm with others in front of a driveway, blocking a car.

Abughazaleh said officers dragged one of her friends away before others picked her up and threw her on the pavement. Abughazaleh said agents then used tear gas and pepper balls, causing her eyes to run and her throat to burn.

“Protesters were completely peaceful,” she said. “We had no weapons, just signs and songs. We were afraid and angry.”

ICE officials, meanwhile, described the protesters as “rioters” and accused them of assaulting law enforcement, slashing car tires and blocking the entrance of the facility.

McLaughlin said local police refused to answer multiple calls for assistance from federal law enforcement. The Broadview Police Department did not immediately respond to messages Friday.

Activists and local leaders lately have stepped up pushback to the surge of immigration agents in the Chicago area, aiming to deter agents, warn residents and keep attention on a man killed by an immigration officer last week.

Authorities said agents were pursuing a man with a history of reckless driving who had entered the country illegally. They said Silverio Villegas Gonzalez evaded arrest and dragged an officer with his vehicle. The government said the officer fired because he feared for his life.

“They want us to be afraid,” Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, a Democrat, said in reference to the Trump administration. “They want us to just kind of go into our little corners and not do anything. … We’re not going to let that happen.”

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Associated Press reporter Ed White in Detroit contributed to this story.