New from the Village of Broadview, Office of the Mayor Broadview, Illinois
13 October 2025
For Immediate Release
Contact:
David Ormsby
312-342-9638
Broadview Shrinks Protest Safety Zones
The following statement can be attributed to Village of Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson:
“The protests at the ICE facility on Saturday night degenerated into chaos. There were 15 arrests, and 10 of those were around the age of my own daughter. As a mother and a mayor, I am mad. Broadview didn’t choose to have the ICE facility in our community. But it’s here. And so are Broadview residents. There are too many protesters abusing their right to protest. Too many are raising their fists rather than their voices, creating chaos at the expense of the people who call Broadview home. Broadview residents lack the protestors’ privilege to return to calm, quiet neighborhoods for undisturbed rest.
Therefore, I have issued a new executive order, in consultation with the Illinois State Police and Cook County Sheriff, that permits protests only at the safety zone located at the ICE facility on Beach Street. There will no longer be a designated protest safety zone at 2000 South 25th Avenue between Lexington and Fillmore.
Additionally, it has been only God’s grace alone that a protester has not been struck and killed by a motorist on 25th Avenue given how frequently protesters dash onto this busy, four-lane street. This new measure will provide for both the serenity of residents and safety of protestors.
As I have repeatedly said, I respect, support, and defend the protesters’ free and – peaceful – speech against the outrageous injustices and deplorable unprovoked chemical arms attacks by ICE agents against American citizens, journalists, and ministers that put Broadview police and firefighters in harms’ way.
Nevertheless, my first priority is to defend public safety and the residents who live here and people who work here. They deserve stability, safety, and respect, a quality of life that is currently being denied to them. They deserve the love and kindness that they expect by being Broadview residents.”