In the past two weeks, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have been active in several cities across Rhode Island.
On March 4, ICE agents operating in Central Falls allegedly “surveilled and grabbed” an individual “off the street,” according to a social media post made by Alliance to Mobilize Our Resistance Rhode Island, a community support network that advocates against deportation and violence.
The individual is a parent of a Central Falls student, and the detainment took place near school grounds, according to Central Falls Mayor Maria Rivera.
The arrest was characterized as “brazen and inhumane” by Rhode Island State Senator Jonathon Acosta ’11 MA’16 MA’19 PhD’24.5 (D-Central Falls, Pawtucket) in an interview with The Herald. Acosta said that the arrest follows a “more combative” method of immigration enforcement under President Trump’s administration.
Department of Homeland Security agents were also seen at the Providence Amtrak Station on multiple days last week, according to an Instagram post by the Deportation Defense Coalition.
The Deportation Defense Coalition — consisting of the Olneyville Neighborhood Association, the Party for Socialism and Liberation Rhode Island and AMOR — aims to “educate, organize and mobilize the community,” ONA Director Eloi Rodas wrote in an email to The Herald.
According to the AMOR website, the network supports a defense hotline that “connects community members to AMOR’s case manager and community support network.”
“When a caller reaches out, our volunteer operators offer them support and dispatch a verifier to scout the location where possible ICE activity is taking place,” Rodas wrote.
But while he finds it important to communicate information among members of the immigrant community, Acosta cautioned against the use of public social media posts to notify community members of ICE activity.
“I don’t want people to be afraid,” Acosta said, adding that communications should avoid “the attention or the ire of the federal authorities.”
Providence Mayor Brett Smiley did not receive any communication about DHS’s presence in the city, Smiley’s Deputy Press Secretary Samara Pinto wrote in an email to The Herald.
In two previous instances this year, ICE has notified the Providence Police Department of their “intent to come to the city,” Pinto wrote, explaining that the notifications did not include details about the operations.
On Feb. 24, ICE officers arrested a Guatemalan man in Providence who was wanted in connection to a 2024 home invasion.
The arrest followed a Jan. 29 ICE detainment of an unidentified individual in Newport, The Herald previously reported.
Since taking office on Jan. 20, President Trump has shared plans for mass deportations and increased expedited removals of immigrants lacking permanent legal status, The Herald previously reported.
Amid these national changes, Providence has stated that it will not “proactively collaborate” with ICE agents.
Similarly, Rivera’s administration is “committed to ensuring that Central Falls is a place where all families feel safe and supported,” she wrote in a statement sent to The Herald.
“Right now, I know many families in our community are feeling afraid,” she said. “I want them to know that I see them, I stand with them and I will always advocate for their safety and well-being.”
The White House and ICE did not respond to requests for comment.
Lev Kotler-Berkowitz is a sophomore senior staff writer covering city and state politics. He is from the Boston area and is concentrating in Political Science and Economics. In his free time, Lev can be found playing baseball or running around with his dog.
