PORTLAND, Maine — The Trump administration is now targeting its mass deportation campaign on Maine, a state with relatively few residents living in the United States illegally but notable African refugee communities in its largest cities.
The Department of Homeland Security named the operation “Catch of the Day,” an apparent play on Maine’s seafood industry, just as it has done for other enforcement surges like “Patriot” in Massachusetts, “Metro Surge” in Minnesota, and “Midway Blitz” in Chicago.
Reports of a surge in immigration arrests have struck fear in immigrant communities of Portland and Lewiston and prompted backlash from Gov. Janet Mills and other Democrats. Among their actions was a refusal to assist ICE agents by issuing undercover license plates to obscure the identity of their vehicles.
Gov. Mills said Wednesday that if federal agents have warrants, they should present them. However, she added that separating parents who have committed no crime from their children is “only sowing intimidation and fear and fostering division and suspicion among neighbors.”
In response to the heightened enforcement, citizens have formed networks to alert neighborhoods about the presence of ICE agents and to bring food to immigrants staying in their homes.
Portland’s superintendent revealed that the school district is developing an online learning plan for its students, more than half of whom aren’t white.
Many local businesses have posted signs stating ICE agents are not welcome.
“While we respect the law, we challenge the need for a paramilitary approach,” Portland Mayor Mark Dion said at a news conference Wednesday, where he was joined by other local officials. “This council doesn’t stand apart from our immigrant communities; we stand with them.”
Portland and Lewiston are home to thousands of residents of African descent. Somali immigration accelerated in the early 2000s, resulting in Maine having one of the nation’s largest Somali populations.
Now, the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents is causing great anxiety in Portland, said city council member Pious Ali, a native of Ghana.
“Our schools have seen about a quarter of immigrants not showing up,” Ali said, adding that many fear going to work as well. “There are immigrants who live here who work in our hospitals, they work in our schools, they work in our hotels; they are part of the economic engine of our community.”
ICE agents, Ali said, do not need to spread trauma by smashing doors and windows. “The federal government has the ability to contact these people without unleashing fear into our communities.”
Portland Councilor Wes Pelletier noted that business owners, teachers, and college students have shared information to alert neighborhoods of enforcement activity. Additionally, volunteers have delivered groceries and diapers to families afraid to venture outside.
“Every arrest feels like a wound to Portland,” Pelletier said.
### Dozens of arrests
The enforcement action is arriving in Maine, a mostly rural state with about 1.4 million residents, as confrontations between ICE and demonstrators continue in Minnesota, where ICE is under scrutiny following an agent’s fatal shooting of Renee Good.
ICE did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday regarding the agency’s plans for Maine. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirmed that increased enforcement began on Tuesday.
“We have approximately 1,400 targets here in Maine,” Patricia Hyde, the ICE deputy assistant director, told Fox News, adding that agents had made 50 arrests by Tuesday.
“We have launched Operation Catch of the Day to target the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens in the state. On the first day of operations, we arrested illegal aliens convicted of aggravated assault, false imprisonment, and endangering the welfare of a child,” said Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin in a statement.
### No new undercover license plates
Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said state officials received a request from U.S. Customs and Border Protection for confidential, undercover Maine license plates but decided against issuing them.
The license plates are used on unmarked vehicles, and Bellows stated she wants more assurance that they will be used appropriately.
ICE’s use of license plates in other states has raised concerns. Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, a Democrat, issued a warning to ICE agents last year that swapping or altering license plates is illegal.
“These requests, in light of rumors of ICE deployment to Maine and abuses of power in Minnesota and elsewhere, raise concerns. We have not revoked existing plates but have paused issuance of new plates. We want to be assured that Maine plates will not be used for lawless purposes,” Bellows said.
Bellows, a Democrat who has repeatedly clashed with the Trump administration, cited accountability concerns.
Customs and Border Protection did not respond to requests for comment.
However, a top Maine Republican said withholding the undercover plates would jeopardize public safety.
“That really, one, puts us at odds as a state. Puts us at one end of an extreme that we really shouldn’t be on,” Senate Leader Trey Stewart said.
### Calls for peaceful response
Maine’s top federal prosecutor, U.S. Attorney Andrew Benson, joined Democrats in calling for any demonstrations in the state to remain peaceful and civil.
Benson, a Trump appointee, warned people to stay out of the agents’ way or face prosecution.
### Schools and Democrats call for caution
Portland Public Schools, the largest and most diverse school district in the state, said in a statement Wednesday that it conducted a “lockout” at two schools to prevent anyone from entering the buildings Tuesday during the school day due to concerns about nearby ICE activity.
“It was quickly determined that there was no threat to our school communities and the lockouts were lifted within minutes. This is an understandably tense time in our community, as reports and rumors of immigration enforcement actions grow,” the district said.
Maine Democrats have condemned the ICE activity.
“The Trump administration has deployed ICE agents to Portland, Lewiston, and possibly other Maine communities. This is not about public safety. It is about fear, control, and political theater,” said Devon Murphy-Anderson, executive director of the Maine Democratic Party.
*Associated Press journalist Leah Willingham contributed from Boston.*
https://abc7.com/story/ice-activity-increases-maine-anxiety-grows-immigrant-communities/18445584/
