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OMAHA, Neb. (CN) — Protests kicked off Tuesday in Nebraska following an ICE raid at an Omaha meatpacking plant, which led to the detention of nearly 80 people.
About 200 protesters gathered at 33rd and L Streets, a key intersection in the South Omaha neighborhood, long a haven for immigrants who work in the city’s meatpacking industry.
They waved Mexican and U.S. flags and signs displaying phrases like, “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you,” and “I drink my Horchata warm because fuck ICE.”
Traffic backed up. People leaned out the windows of cars and stood in sunroofs holding signs, as car horns honked and engines roared.
Many people brought their children to the protests, saying they wanted to set a positive example.
“We love this country. We came here for the American dream, just like everyone else did,” Viri Herrera, 37, of Omaha, told Courthouse News.
Herrera and Mayra Pena, 35, of nearby Bellevue were waving a Mexican flag. They said they wanted to celebrate their Mexican heritage but were also glad to be Americans.
“I’m proud to live in the United States. Do I hate what’s going on? Yes,” Herrera said. “I am so thankful for my parents bringing me here.”
As she spoke to a reporter, a vehicle squealed its tires. Herrera cringed. “That’s not what we want,” she said. “Use your voice in a positive way.”
Elizabeth Rodriguez, 31, of Omaha said she wanted to show the people arrested that they were not alone.
“They are hard workers, they are here for everybody,” she said. “We want to contribute to this state.”
Rodriguez said she did not care for certain aspects of the Los Angeles protests, where some threw rocks at police and set Waymo self-driving cars on fire. People should be protesting, she said, but doing it peacefully.
The scene of the arrests in Omaha Tuesday morning were tense, with some opposed to the raid throwing rocks at a line of SUVs carrying federal agents, shattering a window, according to some reports.
Tuesday’s arrests came while Omaha was already rattled following the circulation of a video of ICE agents arresting a man in the dining room of a local restaurant in front of brunch-eating patrons.
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