Children Deserve A Fascism-Free Halloween

But, in many cities across the country, it doesn't look like they're going to get it.

There’s no question that Trump’s reckless ICE raids in cities across the U.S.— most recently in Chicago, where more than 3,000 people have been arrested—are meant to create a climate of fear among law-abiding immigrants and citizens living in liberal strongholds. No matter what your stance on immigration might be, I think it’s pretty fair to say that randomly snatching people who are going about their everyday lives sounds like the building plot of a dystopian horror film.

Wednesday morning, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) had to make a heartbreaking plea via a letter to the Department of Homeland Security: to pause immigration raids in Chicago for Halloween weekend long enough to allow children to celebrate the holiday without fear.

The letter was sent to U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, acting Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Todd M. Lyons, and Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection Rodney S. Scott, per NBC. Specifically, it asks for a pause in ICE operations from Friday, Oct. 31 until Sunday, Nov. 2, “in and around homes, schools, hospitals, parks, houses of worship, and other community gatherings where Halloween celebrations are taking place.”

The communication feels necessary, given the current atmosphere in Chicago and other cities where innocent civilians are experiencing the violence involved in ICE’s pursuits. This past weekend, federal agents in gas masks dropped tear gas on a neighborhood where a children’s Halloween parade was underway, forcing the organizers to cancel the celebrations, per ABC. “Even in these difficult times, they should be able to trust that they are safe — if only for one weekend,” Pritzker wrote in his letter.

Unfortunately, it appears that business — and the brutality that often ensues alongside it — will proceed as usual, since the request was denied by Noem.