Politics

Mayor Johnson Unveils ‘Abolish ICE’ Snowplow, Winner of Annual Contest

Mayor Brandon Johnson unveiled on Wednesday the Chicago snowplow named “Abolish ICE,” celebrating the success of the push to use the city’s annual contest to boost efforts to oppose President Donald Trump’s mass deportation effort.

“This name derives from our city’s legacy of standing up for justice, dignity, and the rights of all people, no matter where they come from,” Johnson said in front of the city’s massive salt dome. “I want to take this moment to reiterate that Chicago does not want ICE on our streets, in our airports, nor in our city. Chicago believes in abolishing ICE.”

The Trump administration recently ordered dozens of ICE agents to supplement Transportation Security Administration staffing at O’Hare International Airport, a move that Johnson condemned.

An unidentified man disrupted the mayor’s remarks, accusing him of celebrating the harm caused by undocumented immigrants. Members of the mayor’s security detail and Chicago police officers quickly escorted him from city property.

Johnson did not directly answer a question about whether he considered rescheduling the celebration of the ‘Abolish ICE’ snowplow after the murder of Loyola University student Sheridan Gorman on March 19.

Jose Medina, 25, a migrant from Venezuela, has been charged with her murder.

Instead, Johnson said he would continue to the president’s efforts to deport millions of undocumented immigrants.

“I’m going to continue to use every single tool that’s available to me to protect the residents of the city of Chicago,” Johnson said. “This tragedy is not going to deter us from our work. In fact, it’s going to challenge us all to double down on our efforts to ensure that we are protecting every single individual across neighborhoods.”

The other winners of the fourth annual contest were Stephen Coldbert, Pope Frío XIV, The Blizzard of Oz, Svencoolie and Caleb Chilliams, Chicago officials announced.

One snowplow in each of Chicago’s six snow districts will be named in honor of the winners.

Approximately 13,000 entries were submitted in this year’s contest, cast by 39,000 voters, officials said.

“Abolish ICE” has become a rallying cry for those who want to see U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security along with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, dismantled.

The rallying cry rose to prominence during the first Trump administration, when federal officials separated parents from their children after they crossed the border without permission, sparking an uproar.

While most of the agents that conducted the aggressive raids that swept Chicago in recent months belonged to the Border Patrol, the slogan has become a catch-all phrase for opposing the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

Social media account @BebopOtt, who identified himself to WTTW News as a “devout Chicagoan and Democratic Socialist content creator/gadfly,” spearheaded the effort to use the annual contest to signal widespread opposition to the president and his mass deportation effort.

The winning names join the rest of the named snowplow fleet, which includes Skilling It, Snower Wacker, Salter Payton and CTRL-SALT-DELETE.

Contact Heather Cherone: @HeatherCherone | (773) 569-1863 | [email protected]

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