“It’s disheartening to be forced to go against your community members and your neighbors,” mentioned Employees Sgt. Demi Palecek, a Latina guardswoman and state legislative candidate from Illinois’s thirteenth District. “It feels illegal. This is not what we signed up to do.”
Each Palecek and Capt. Dylan Blaha, who’s working for Congress in the identical district, described rising unease amongst Guard members after the White Home federalized 500 troops – together with members of the Illinois and Texas Nationwide Guard – to safe federal immigration services and personnel within the Chicago space.
“I signed up to defend the American people and protect the Constitution,” Blaha mentioned. “When we have somebody in power who’s actively dismantling our rights — free speech, due process, freedom of the press — it’s really hard to be a soldier right now.”
Undated picture: Illinois Nationwide Guard Capt. Dylan Blaha. left.
Photograph supplied by Dylan Blaha
Palecek says members of army are “being used as pawns”
Requested if she would refuse a direct order to deploy to Chicago, Palecek didn’t hesitate. “Absolutely. I would definitely say no,” she mentioned. “I’m not going to go against my community members, my family and my culture. I believe this is the time to be on the right side of history.”
“Look at 1930s, 1940s Germany,” Blaha mentioned. “There is a point where if you didn’t stand up to the Gestapo, are you just actively one of them now?”
A federal choose on Wednesday delayed the deployment of the Nationwide Guard in Chicago indefinitely, till a last ruling is issued or the Supreme Courtroom guidelines on the matter.
Undated picture: Employees Sgt. Demi Palecek, Illinois Nationwide Guard, middle
Photograph supplied by Demi Palacek
The 2 guardsmen accused the Trump administration of weaponizing the army towards civilians underneath the guise of public security. “They’re definitely being used as pawns,” Palecek mentioned.
Blaha agreed, saying most Guard models “train to fight and win our nation’s wars,” and they don’t help regulation enforcement or Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “We’re not trained to assist ICE and help them just be violent in our communities,” he mentioned, calling it “shameful.”
The pair famous that Guard members at present mobilized in Illinois are on 29-day orders — too brief to qualify for full advantages. “They’re not even getting paid right now because of the government shutdown,” Blaha added. “Most don’t want to be there. They’re scared, too.”
Fears for immigrant service members
Roughly 200 inexperienced card holders serve within the Illinois Nationwide Guard – with 160 authorized everlasting residents within the state’s Military Nationwide Guard and 30 within the state’s Air Nationwide Guard.
“They’re in sheer panic,” Palecek mentioned. “They’re choosing between standing up for their community or losing everything — their legal status, their path to citizenship.”
U.S. federal regulation typically prohibits undocumented immigrants from enlisting within the U.S. Armed Forces, together with the Military Nationwide Guard and Air Nationwide Guard. However for inexperienced card holders, army service may help expedite U.S. citizenship underneath longstanding federal packages.
Packages like Parole in Place exist to guard relations of service members from deportation and assist them modify standing, however members say purposes have been slowed or outright denied in latest months, leaving households in authorized limbo.
“Everyone says, ‘Why don’t they do it the right way?’” Palecek continued, providing a sentiment usually voiced by these condemning unlawful immigration. “But they are doing it the right way,” Palecek mentioned.
Retribution of their ranks
Each Blaha and Palecek mentioned they’ve confronted retaliation for talking publicly. Blaha disclosed that his safety clearance was suspended by the Protection Division after posting a viral video urging troopers to disobey illegal orders. “They twisted my words,” he mentioned. “I have about 30 days in order to provide them with a written response.”
Retribution, Palecek added, is “real.” She’s obtained dying threats since denouncing the deployments and launching her political marketing campaign. “It weighs on you mentally after a while,” she mentioned.
Nonetheless, each say silence will not be an possibility. “We were trained to stand up for what we believe in and stand up for the American people,” Blaha mentioned.
“Today it’s Chicago. Tomorrow it could be somewhere else.”
Palecek, who as soon as served in energetic obligation, mentioned the present mission has made her ashamed of her uniform. “I’ve been truly proud of what I’ve been able to do in the military,” she mentioned. “And right now I hate saying I’m in the military. It’s embarrassing.”
Each see a harmful precedent in deploying federal troops to U.S. cities. “It’s a slow normalization of using the military in American cities,” Blaha mentioned. “If he declares martial law enough times, people will start to think it’s OK.”
When requested to explain what America seems to be like with a federalized Nationwide Guard presence nationwide, Blaha replied: “Unsafe.” Palecek provided: “Disgusting.”
“They’re coming after communities that have built this country,” Palecek added. “To be used against my culture, my community, my neighbors — that’s vile and disgusting to me.”
The 2 troopers say they’re talking out to warn the remainder of the nation. “Today it’s Chicago. Tomorrow it could be somewhere else,” Blaha mentioned. “We need to combat the misinformation and stand up to Donald Trump. Crime is down. This is not about safety — it’s about control.”
