In Solidarity with the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts & Culture
From the Desk of CENTRO, The Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College
From the Desk of CENTRO, The Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College. Find the original here:
“On Tuesday, July 8th at 4 p.m., 15-20 Homeland Security vehicles arrived at the National Puerto Rican Museum of Arts & Culture (NMPRAC) without prior notice or legal documentation. Federal agents entered the museum property and refused multiple requests to present a warrant, badge, or identification. Officers informed museum staff that they were assessing entry and exit points for upcoming events that may draw undocumented attendees. When asked to leave the premises, agents refused and continued to walk the property, further intimidating staff and disregarding boundaries saying they could be anywhere they want, wherever they want, and however they want.”
The recent escalation of arbitrary arrests and lawless detainments, repatriations and renditions by ICE of individuals—both documented and undocumented—as well as U.S. citizens, without signed judicial warrants, proper identification, or due process, is incredibly distressing. The blatant profiling, targeting, and violation of constitutional rights of Black, brown, and other disparaged and targeted communities continues to demonstrate how deep-rooted racism, bigotry, and xenophobia are in our federal government, institutions, and broader society. The militarization of ICE and the specific targeting of community leaders, cultural centers, and cultural events is not a well-intentioned effort to make our countries or cities safer, but instead a tactic used to intimidate, silence, and wantonly demobilize communities that have long been disenfranchised and oppressed.
Constitutional protections, such as those in the 4th, 5th, and 14th Amendments, were established at the creation of the federal republic because its crafters feared the tendencies of an unbound government to overstep its limits. U.S. history has also shown us that when the U.S. government unleashes its power arbitrarily and with impunity, its iniquity affects disproportionately those persons whose claims to “We, the People” have been challenged, neglected, ignored, or rejected. Native Americans have known it since before the Trail of Tears and onward. African Americans have experienced it since 1619; Native Hawaiians and Puerto Ricans, since 1898.
Surveillance programs like COINTELPRO and the unjust internment over of 100,000 Japanese Americans—two-thirds of whom were U.S. citizens—during WWII are examples of when the State, in its ever-expanding power, has acted with impunity, privileging the enforcement of some laws unchecked over the faithful execution of others. Currently, ICE/DHS/DoJ is privileging the enforcement of immigration laws and regulations, while ignoring constitutional and legal provisions. They may all be laws, but they are not executing all laws equally or at all. This pattern of behavior has historically had severe and significant consequences including thwarting the Puerto Rican decolonization movement, undermining and dismantling activist organizations like the Black Panther Party and the Young Lords Organization, and subjecting individuals to criminalization, displacement, surveillance, and state-sanctioned violence based on their politics, identity, and/or origin.
Communal safe-havens and their caretakers, like Martin Sostre and The Afro-Asian Bookshop in Buffalo, New York, have long been targeted by local and federal agencies due to their persistence in preserving, educating, and transforming the communities they serve. NMPRAC itself is located in the historic landmark receptory and stables of Humboldt Park. From community-led resistance against police violence to solidarity marches demanding social services, an end to police brutality, and neighborhood displacement with the Young Lords Organization, to the Puerto Rican Day Parade on Division Street, this is a sacred site of collective struggle, resistance, and pride for ChiRicans. However, Humboldt Park and its surrounding areas in Chicago are also home to several vibrant immigrant communities from across Latin America and the Caribbean who have each enriched the city with their presence alone. These same communities deserve respect and the ability to celebrate without fear of ICE raids, family separation, and deportation.
CENTRO stands with the leaders and stakeholders of the NMPRAC, who quickly galvanized a united response with over a dozen elected officials, Mexican & Black museums, and over 29 immigration organizations in response to this act of intimidation. These solidarity efforts from the Puerto Rican community are critical as we collectively wield our rights and privileges as U.S. citizens to support and defend immigrant communities under attack and refuse to let our shared communal spaces be weaponized against the most vulnerable in the communities we live in and serve.
In the coming weeks, several important cultural celebrations will be taking place in Chicago, including Barrio Arts Fest (July 12th + 13th), Colombian Fest (July 18th-20th), and Fiesta Boricua (August 29th-31st). As stated at the press conference at NMPRAC today, we encourage the community to stand in solidarity together in these upcoming events to celebrate our heritage, our culture, and our legacy together. We also encourage you to exercise your First Amendment right to contact your elected officials and petition for redress of your grievances, and to support organizations on the ground who continue to educate individuals on their rights and provide resources to immigrant communities currently being targeted.
Learn more about The National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts & Culture (NMPRAC)
Learn more about the aforementioned events in Chicago:
Barrio Arts Fest (July 12th + 13th) -
Colombian Fest (July 18th-20th) -
Fiesta Boricua (August 29th-31st) - https://www.facebook.com/FiestaBoricuaChicago/
If you see ICE in Illinois, need legal support for deportation, or need referrals to legal and social services, call the Family Support Network Hotline → 855-435-7693
Learn more about the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR)
Regardless of your immigration status, Know Your Rights:
United States Constitution -
Immigrants’ Rights -
Race, Ethnicity, or National Origin-Based Discrimination - https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/discrimination-on-the-basis-of-race-ethnicity-or-national-origin
Prisoners’ Rights -
Know Your Rights Printable Pamphlet from ICIRR - https://www.icirr.org/_files/ugd/97f293_8518141778324d33913925d144ed9fc6.pdf