In Photos: Documenting a Caravan of Care

On Nov. 8, The Culture staff photographer Kenn Cook Jr. photographed a car caravan as it trailed Customs and Border Patrol agents throughout the West Side. This is the story of what he experienced, in his own words and photos. This was produced with support from the Magnum Foundation.

There were about 60 to 70 cars full of civilians chasing the agents through the city—following them, honking their horns, blowing whistles, alerting the public that ICE [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] was out. The caravan followed them from the FBI field offices [2111 W. Roosevelt Rd. on the Near West Side] to Little Village and into areas like North Lawndale.

ICE claimed that they were shot at that day, but people in the caravan told me that federal agents made that up. I didn’t see a shooting, but I saw agents in the street with guns and heard flash bangs go off in Little Village.

Greg Bovino [U.S. Border Patrol boss] was in Little Village threatening to tear gas people. I saw an agent—bald-headed, with a mask over his face—walking around with tear gas in his hand. They’re not supposed to throw tear gas at protesters, but they use it to intimidate people.

You know, I try to stay objective, but it was so inspiring to see these community members come together and fight to take back their neighborhood. These were civilians—organizers, activists, rapid-response people, the community.

These people have been living in fear, but you see them come together and push back. They were like, “This is our community. You’re not going to do this.”

Their goal was to make sure ICE didn’t take anybody. Following the agents was the community’s way of sounding the alarm.