On a tense Saturday in Chicago’s Little Village, federal immigration operations escalated into chaos, revealing the growing friction between local communities and federal law enforcement. According to ABC7 Chicago, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents were conducting operations as part of “Operation Midway Blitz” near 26th Street and Kedzie Avenue on November 8, 2025, when gunshots rang out. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed that an unknown man driving a black Jeep fired at agents before fleeing the scene, leaving the assailant still at large as of that evening.
The day’s events didn’t stop there. Amid the confusion, an angry crowd gathered after federal officers allegedly detained a young woman, prompting heated confrontations. Cellphone videos captured by residents, cited by Alderman Byron Sigcho-Lopez, show agents emerging from vehicles with weapons drawn and deploying tear gas on bystanders. “It’s very clear. They came out of the vehicles pointing their weapons and they used tear gas on people,” Sigcho-Lopez told ABC7.
As the crowd’s frustration mounted, things took another turn. A Chicago police officer, called in for crowd control, was struck by a car and rushed to the hospital. The Chicago Police Department (CPD) has yet to provide an update on the officer’s condition. While officers responded to reports of shots fired, CPD confirmed to WLS that “there are no reports of anyone struck by gunfire.”
The federal presence in Little Village was unmistakable. CBP agents, under the watchful eye of a helicopter, used tear gas again while detaining another person near 26th and Pulaski. Residents described the scene as harrowing. “It’s just been terrible to see what ICE is doing to our communities,” local resident Hubertine Henzler told ABC7. “We’re scared for our neighbors. We’re scared for our friends.”
Later that afternoon, the tension flared anew as neighbors sounded warning whistles and honked horns when agents reportedly attempted, unsuccessfully, to detain a man and his 11-year-old niece near 25th and Sawyers. After agents claimed a vehicle had rammed their SUV, CPD was again summoned for crowd control. The fate of those detained earlier remains unclear, with no public information on their whereabouts or any charges filed.
DHS characterized the incident as part of a troubling uptick in violence and obstruction targeting federal law enforcement. In a statement, the agency said, “This incident is not isolated and reflects a growing and dangerous trend of violence and obstruction. Over the past two months, we’ve seen an increase in assaults and obstruction targeting federal law enforcement during operations. These confrontations highlight the dangers our agents face daily and the escalating aggression toward law enforcement. The violence must end.”
While the events in Chicago highlighted the immediate risks faced by both law enforcement and civilians, they also underscored a deeper, more pervasive issue: the expanding surveillance capabilities of federal immigration agencies and the mounting concerns over civil liberties.
As reported by NPR, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is rapidly acquiring new surveillance tools to identify and track individuals in the field. Among their arsenal is a mobile facial recognition app known as Mobile Fortify. This software allows agents to point a cell phone at someone’s face, potentially identifying them and determining their immigration status on the spot. The app searches Customs and Border Protection databases, including photos collected when people enter or exit the United States, and can return details such as name, birth date, alien number, and citizenship status. Notably, photos captured by the app are stored for 15 years, even if there’s no match.
ICE’s embrace of technology doesn’t stop at facial recognition. The agency has revived a contract with Paragon Solutions, an Israeli-founded company that produces spyware capable of hacking into cell phones and monitoring encrypted messages by simply sending a text—no clicks required. According to Jeramie Scott of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, “It has essentially complete access to your phone. It’s an extremely dangerous surveillance tech that really goes against our Fourth Amendment protections.”
Additionally, ICE is ramping up social media surveillance, investing in AI-driven software and considering the deployment of teams to monitor platforms like Facebook and TikTok around the clock. The agency’s surveillance infrastructure has ballooned in recent years, with a 2022 report from Georgetown Law’s Center on Privacy and Technology finding that ICE could locate three out of four U.S. adults through utility records and had scanned a third of adult Americans’ driver’s license photos.
These technological advances are part of the Trump administration’s aggressive push to increase deportations, aiming for a target of one million removals per year. The administration argues that such tools are essential for apprehending dangerous criminals. An ICE spokesperson told NPR, “Nothing new here. For years law enforcement across the nation has leveraged technological innovation to fight crime. ICE is no different. Employing various forms of technology in support of investigations and law enforcement activities aids in the arrest of criminal gang members, child sex offenders, murderers, drug dealers, identity thieves and more, all while respecting civil liberties and privacy interests.”
But not everyone is convinced. Democratic senators, including Edward Markey of Massachusetts, have voiced strong legal and privacy concerns. Markey told NPR, “Americans have a right to walk through public spaces without being surveilled.” He and other senators have called on ICE to stop using mobile facial recognition apps, warning that “this type of on-demand surveillance is harrowing and it should put all of us on guard. It chills speech and erodes privacy. It ultimately undermines our democracy.” The senators’ letter to ICE raised questions about the legal basis for the technology, its development, whether U.S. citizens are included in the database, and if the tools have been used to identify protesters and minors. ICE has not responded to these queries.
Privacy advocates echo these concerns. Emily Tucker, executive director of the Center on Privacy and Technology at Georgetown Law, told NPR, “Immigration powers are being used to justify mass surveillance of everybody. The purpose of this is to build up a massive surveillance apparatus that can be used for whatever kind of policing the people in power decide that they want to undertake.”
Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security has published a proposed rule that would expand its ability to collect biometric data from noncitizens and their U.S. citizen relatives applying to adjust their immigration status. The proposal includes facial images, iris scans, fingerprints, voice prints, and even DNA, with a public comment period open until early January 2026.
As federal agencies escalate both their physical and digital presence in communities like Little Village, Chicago, the nation is left grappling with the balance between security and civil liberties. The events of November 8 serve as a stark reminder: the debate over immigration enforcement is not just about policy, but about the kind of society Americans want to build—one where safety and privacy are not mutually exclusive.
