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A peaceful village in upstate New York erupted into protest this weekend after the arrest of a third-grade student and his family by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), triggering emotional outcry from educators, community members, and immigrant rights advocates.
On Saturday, over a thousand protesters marched through Sackets Harbor, a quiet lakeside town, demanding the release of a mother and her three children who were detained during an ICE operation last month.
The children had been enrolled in the local public school for three years, well-known and well-loved by teachers and classmates alike.
The march stretched more than two miles, from a local park to the home of border czar Tom Homan, where demonstrators chanted “Bring them home!” and carried hand-painted signs with messages like “Third Graders Belong in Classrooms, Not Cages” and “No Child Left Behind — Or Deported.”
The ICE operation that sparked the protest was initially aimed at arresting an individual charged with possession of child pornography. The agency had a warrant for a specific residence in Sackets Harbor.
But when ICE agents arrived at North Harbor Dairy, they didn’t stop at their primary target. According to officials, seven additional people were detained — including a mother and her three children, ages 8, 15, and 17, who lived on the same road as the suspect’s home.
Though not named publicly due to privacy protections, the children were identified by the community as students of Sackets Harbor Central School, where they had been active for years.
The children were handcuffed, placed in a detention van alongside the primary suspect, and taken to a federal holding center.
For Jaime Cook, principal of Sackets Harbor Central School and a lifelong resident of the town, the moment was deeply personal.
“They lived in a house on the same road as a home ICE had a warrant for,” she said. “The fact that ICE went door to door is unfathomable. The fact that our students were handcuffed and put into the same van as the alleged criminal from down the street is unconscionable.”
Cook described knowing the children and their mother personally. “I’ve driven them home from tutoring. I’ve picked them up for school. In a town like ours, this is normal. We help each other.”
She added, “When I think of my third grader’s experience, my stomach twists, and it’s hard to breathe.”
Jonna St. Croix, a teacher at the school, also joined the protest. Two of the detained children are her students.
“I see them every morning,” she said. “They always smile. They say, ‘Good morning, Miss.’ They ask for a snack. They’re good kids. And now their desks are empty.”
She paused before adding, “You can feel it in the room — the absence.”
The demonstration on Saturday, organized by the Jefferson County Democratic Committee, drew residents from surrounding towns and advocacy groups from across the state. Local businesses donated water and snacks. Churches opened their doors. School buses carried elderly residents to the march’s starting point.
Even New York Attorney General Letitia James sent a statement to be read at the rally: “I am heartbroken and angry over what happened. This should never happen to any child, let alone a third grader.”
Though a small group of counterprotesters also showed up, the event remained peaceful, with law enforcement standing by but not intervening.
Tom Homan, President Trump’s border czar and a former acting director of ICE, defended the agency’s actions in an interview on WWNY-TV.
“It wasn’t a raid,” he said. “It was a search warrant execution at a house where a family was found in the country illegally. ICE is doing everything by the book.”
He added, “Once the investigation gets to the point where we don’t have an interest in this family, then a decision will be made on release.”
But that explanation didn’t satisfy community leaders.
Corey Decillis, chair of the Jefferson County Democratic Committee, told reporters: “We’ve seen these kinds of things in headlines before. But when it happens in your backyard — when it’s your school, your kids, your neighbors — it becomes real. And unacceptable.”
Though ICE officials say the mother and her children were undocumented, they had voluntarily registered with immigration authorities years ago and were complying with monitoring programs.
“By all accounts, this family was doing everything right within a broken system,” said an immigration attorney assisting with their case. “They were attending school, reporting in. Then suddenly, they’re dragged away without notice, without process.”
Critics argue that targeting families in proximity to criminal suspects — without a warrant for their own home — is a violation of civil rights and contributes to a culture of fear and silence among immigrant communities.
Advocates fear that immigrant parents may now hesitate to enroll their children in school, seek medical care, or report crimes, out of fear of detention or deportation.
President Trump has made immigration enforcement a cornerstone of his second-term agenda. He has vowed to deport “millions” of undocumented individuals and has expanded ICE’s authority to carry out sweeps in partnership with local law enforcement.
But these actions have come under increased scrutiny — especially as cases like this one highlight the collateral damage to families, children, and schools.
This is not the first time ICE has been accused of overreach. In recent years, the agency has faced lawsuits over detaining U.S. citizens, conducting raids at courthouses, and handcuffing children at bus stops.
As of Monday morning, the mother and her children remained in detention. Their case is under review by federal immigration authorities.
Meanwhile, 50501 — the national protest movement behind recent anti-Trump demonstrations — has announced that it will include the Sackets Harbor case in its messaging and mobilization efforts for April 19, the date of the next planned nationwide protest.
“They can detain a child, but they can’t detain public outrage,” the group said in a post.
Locally, students and teachers have created a “Solidarity Wall” at the school where classmates can leave notes, drawings, and messages of hope for the missing students.
“We miss them,” said one note, written in crayon. “We want them to come back and play kickball.”
Legal experts say the family has a strong case, especially given the lack of a direct warrant and their ongoing compliance with ICE protocols.
Civil rights organizations, including the ACLU and RAICES, are now monitoring the situation and preparing to challenge any prolonged detention.
For now, Sackets Harbor — a town better known for fishing, maple syrup, and small-town kindness — has become the epicenter of a national debate about justice, immigration, and what it means to protect children.
