In a sharp response to an ICE-involved shooting that took place on Christmas Eve, protestors in Baltimore have come forward with fervent calls for change, demanding an end to any partnerships between Maryland state and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). According to Fox Baltimore, Andrew Mayton, a key figure with the People’s Power Assembly, is pushing Maryland lawmakers to abolish ICE and cease any collaboration, highlighting that local involvement in enforcement should be up for debate in the impending 2026 legislative session. “We consider that our duty to be out here, speak up against what’s happening and put pressure on lawmakers,” Mayton stated. “Stop collaborating with ICE, abolish the agency all together, put the money toward something good.”
The protest erupted in reaction to an incident wherein an ICE official shot Tiago Alexandre Sousa-Martins after a supposed vehicular altercation during an enforcement operation in Glen Burnie, Maryland. WMAR 2 News reports echo a protester’s sentiment, branding it as “sloppy law enforcement” and insisting that trained officers should be equipped to de-escalate rather than exacerbate such encounters.
Homing in on the contentious issue, the Baltimore People’s Power Assembly organized a demonstration and is calling upon Governor Wes Moore and the Maryland General Assembly to intervene decisively, as detailed by WMAR 2 News. The group’s agenda is clear and strongly condemns what it views as an overstep of authority and the use of excessive force by ICE officers. In addition to ending Maryland’s intricate web of local and federal enforcement coordination, activists are drawing attention to alternative allocations for federal funds currently directed toward ICE, arguing that those monies should fuel affordable housing, education, and job programs instead…