ICYMI: Following ICE Arrest of 70-Year-Old Veteran, National Guard Members, Veterans, and ACLU Demand End of Abuse and Brutality
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 2, 2025
Broadview, IL — Today, Common Defense, a national membership organization of veterans and military families, joined allies for a press conference following ICE’s brutal and abusive arrest of a 70-year-old decorated Air Force veteran and member of Common Defense, Dana Briggs. Last Saturday, Briggs was arrested for peacefully assembling at an immigration rally. Speakers demanded that Immigration Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) end its harassment of peaceful protesters like Briggs and of immigrants in the Chicago area.
Videos and Pictures of the Press Conference Here
At the press conference, speakers from Common Defense, Illinois Veterans for Change, Illinois National Guard Members, and a representative from the ACLU Illinois issued the following statements:
“This is an unprecedented time. During ICE’s enforcement practices, we have not only seen a failure to distinguish between undocumented individuals and US citizens. But, we continue to see the practice of detaining and deporting our law-abiding yet undocumented neighbors instead of the gangs of criminals that this administration claimed is plaguing our streets, and used that as a justification to use federal and military force in our neighborhoods. One of the most disturbing aspects of this policy is the detainment and deportation of undocumented veterans, who served and sacrificed for this country alongside native born and naturalized citizens.” - Jermaine Collins, Common Defense Organizer and U.S. Army veteran
“Let me be clear: these are not trained professionals. As a military member, I can tell you—the way they handle weapons is reckless and dangerous. I’ve seen ICE agents with their fingers on the trigger of real M16s, pointing M9s directly at people. Trigger-happy. No trigger discipline. No understanding of gas deployment. With this level of escalation and incompetence, people will die.” - Demi Palecek, Illinois Army National Guard Member and 46th Ward Democratic President
“The Trump administration is turning a blind eye when they see mass deportations tearing apart our communities and when ICE agents and National Guard members are flooding our streets and numbing us with the reality that our civil rights and our democracy is being crushed day by day—that is not patriotism.” - Jesse Rojo, Chair of Illinois Vets for Change and Army Veteran
“The US military is not a law enforcement force. Federalized forces cannot serve as domestic law enforcement, under the Posse Comitatus Act, unless the President declares an insurrection. National guardsmen deployed under state orders can sometimes assist local law enforcement, but our leaders aren’t asking for it. With every military deployment, our President slides the Overton window further to the right. Things that once seemed unthinkable and radical now seem acceptable or even sensible.” - Dylan Blaha, Illinois National Guard Member and Army Veteran
“It is incredibly dangerous to see the military used in a domestic situation like this. It is dangerous that a President thinks it is a training ground for lethal force to be used in a city and major urban area in the United States. It is disturbing to see a President who believes that sweeping people up off the street with military force somehow makes our country better. We’re better than this and we need to speak out.” - Edwin Yohnka, Director of Communications and Public Policy, ACLU of Illinois
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Common Defense Education Fund (501c3) (CDEF) is a grassroots, veteran-led organization dedicated to empowering U.S. military veterans through nonpartisan education, training, and organizing. CDEF focuses on voter education, combating voter suppression, and nonpartisan get-out-the-vote initiatives in targeted states and districts, ensuring veterans continue their legacy of service by defending democracy and justice.