Hundreds gather at Philadelphia City Hall to demand an end to ICE violence

Calls for accountability grow after deaths of immigrants during ice actions

More than 200 people gathered at 7 p.m. in front of Philadelphia City Hall on July 14 for a vigil honoring immigrants Lorenzo Salgado Araujo of Mexico and Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero of Colombia. Both men were fatally shot by agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during traffic-related stops less than six days apart—Lorenzo in Houston, Texas, and Johan in Biddeford, Maine.

Salgado Araujo, 52, a father of three, died on July 7 after being shot by an ICE agent while driving with his coworkers. According to his family, he had lived in the United States for more than 35 years and was in the process of obtaining legal immigration status.

Durán Guerrero, 26, was shot and killed by immigration agents on July 13 when they attempted to stop his vehicle. He held a valid work permit. His wife and their three-year-old daughter witnessed the traumatic incident. According to ICE agents, they opened fire “for public safety reasons.”

Just hours before the vigil, activists learned of a third immigrant death. An unidentified immigrant was struck and killed by a truck while crossing a nearby roadway during an ICE operation in St. Augustine, Florida. As of press time, authorities had not released the victim’s identity or provided information about his immigration status. The names of the agents involved in these deaths have also not been disclosed.

Since the beginning of the current administration, more than 50 people have died as a result of actions involving the agency. Among the most widely publicized cases are those of U.S. citizens Renée Good and Alex Pretti, who died while protesting what organizers describe as a violent anti-immigrant system.

Lenore, a community defense organizer with Juntos, said, “I have been thinking about the decisions and choices that are taken away from us when we become targets of state violence, dehumanization, and criminalization.” Elena, an immigrant justice organizer with Asian American United, and Nancy Nguyen, executive director of VietLead, spoke in solidarity with the Latino community.

Ahmet Selim Tekelioglu, an organizer with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), stated, “Immigrants are seen as a threat, and we are living in an environment of anger and, at the same time, love for our communities.” Teófilo Lennin Reyes, a community organizer with Make the Road Pennsylvania, emphasized that “the U.S. Congress has approved more than $240 billion to fund ICE, and they continue providing more and more money to support the agency. As long as it exists, there will continue to be more deaths.”

At the conclusion of the vigil, participants read aloud the names of individuals who had died following contact with ICE agents, as well as those who died while in ICE detention facilities.

Recently, President Trump ordered the resumption of roadside immigration arrests and defended highway checkpoints, arguing that they are a key tool in combating crime.