Recently, residents of Alverson Ave.—home to a predominantly Latino neighborhood in Providence—faced a day of terror: ICE agents aggressively raided a nearby home and damaged several vehicles in the process.
Despite denials from Police Chief Oscar Perez and Mayor Brett Smiley’s spokesperson, Josh Estrella, Providence police officers were caught on video openly assisting them. Both officials issued hollow statements following the raid denying any collaboration, despite clear video evidence otherwise.
What is especially harmful is the Smiley administration’s lack of empathy. Estrella’s official statement was cold, ignoring the community’s ongoing fears and failing to mention ICE agents’ reckless destruction of residents’ vehicles—damage still left uncompensated.
Following the raid, Chief Perez claimed the department had reviewed the incident and found no wrongdoing. He also stated that body camera footage would not be released to the public. In other words, they investigated themselves, found no wrongdoing, and won’t let the public see what actually transpired.
All of this contradicts Mayor Smiley’s past reassurances that Providence police “would not actively collaborate with ICE agents” or act as immigration officers. He has also said that Providence would “follow federal law,” providing a convenient loophole to break these promises. Moreover, Smiley’s refusal to label Providence a sanctuary city now seems to show what side he has been on.
Local progressive leaders, including Representatives David Morales and Enrique Sanchez, immediately called out the administration’s lies. Both legislators highlighted the administration’s hypocrisy, demanding accountability and transparency. Morales and Sanchez once again reminded us ICE regularly targets people of color, including legal residents, tearing apart families across Providence, which has become all too common as of late.
Even those in power aren’t exempt. Ironically, Police Chief Oscar Perez himself could become a target of ICE if caught without his uniform, which showcases how imperative safety is for people of color under Smiley’s enablement of these harmful policies and inaction.
And, although ICE claimed to be targeting a gang member in this particular raid, their violence has traumatized entire communities. Providence residents continue to face these fears as ICE operations target both undocumented and documented people of color indiscriminately in their own neighborhoods, all the while they watch others face similar circumstances across the nation.
Historically, this is not new, either. The fear inflicted by ICE agents calls back to the recent days of segregation and the Civil Rights era, when police used laws as a pretext to terrorize Black and Brown neighborhoods.
In response to this raid, the Providence City Council issued a letter to Police Chief Oscar Perez and Mayor Smiley, demanding an immediate response and a review of what occurred. The Council stated that cooperation with ICE is explicitly prohibited under the city’s Community-Police Relations Act, and emphasized that Providence Police are not permitted to assist in operations solely for immigration enforcement purposes.
The Council’s letter is clear: Providence Police have no business standing next to ICE agents; what they did may very well be illegal.
Now, Mayor Smiley must choose. Will he stand with Providence’s Latino and immigrant communities or continue to hide behind empty promises and PR spins? Or, more predictably, will he attempt to ignore it all completely?
Providence is watching. Unfortunately, we’re also the ones forced to live through it.
Additional Sources
- David Morales’s statement
- Partial video posted by Councilor Miguel Sanchez of ICE and Providence Police collaboration
- Providence City Council releases bodycam footage of Providence Police