Reports: CBP Expected to Remain in Charlotte Until Friday

As federal agents with the Customs & Border Protection (CBP) have continued to round up and detain folks throughout the city on Monday, ABC News is reporting that the agency is planning to move their agents out of Charlotte on Friday, re-deploying them to New Orleans. 

The Department of Homeland Security reported about 130 arrests in Charlotte over the weekend, with actions beginning on Saturday morning, as videos continue to flood social media showing CBP agents harassing folks in different parts of the city. 

Agents targeted construction workers building homes in south Charlotte on Monday and on Sunday chased a man into the woods who was selling flowers on the side of the street at Grier Road and East W.T. Harris Boulevard. 

The CBP presence continues to affect the economy in corridors such as Central Avenue and Albemarle Road, where businesses have been closing down in fear of raids. ourBRIDGE for Kids executive director Sil Ganzo shut down the organization’s after-school programming indefinitely on Monday after DHS agents came to the facilities off Shamrock Drive in east Charlotte that morning. 

“As for now, our Family Support Team is doing everything they can to best support families,” she wrote. 

Local grassroots community organization Action NC is calling on city leaders to do more than release statements voicing their solidarity with the immigrant community. 

In a release on Sunday night, the group demanded immediate action from Mayor Vi Lyles and Charlotte City Council. 

The release lists four requests: deny access to city-owned property for federal immigration enforcement through ordinance, create official signage for property owners and businesses to post denying access to immigration enforcement officials, and fund direct support organizations. 

“We have seen firsthand over the past 2 days residents being assaulted, denied their constitutional rights, family members abducted with no instruction on how to contact them and a general lack not only due process but a total disregard for humanity,” Sunday’s release read. 

“Action NC calls on Charlotte City Council to take Immediate Action tomorrow … to alleviate the fear and help protect its residents,” it continued. “We want the Charlotte Intergovernmental Committee to take up how the sitting Charlotte City Council will address the threat to our residents now.” 

City council’s Budget, Governance and Intergovernmental Relations Committee will meet at 3 p.m. in Room 280 of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center preceding the full council’s monthly zoning meeting at 5 p.m. in the chambers.

Mayor Vi Lyles released another statement on Monday afternoon addressing what had occurred since the CBP’s arrival in the city. It is included in full below:

“First and foremost, the rights and constitutional protections of every person in Charlotte — regardless of immigration status — must be upheld. Our city has a long-standing commitment to fairness, dignity, and justice. I am deeply concerned with many of the videos I’ve seen, and I urge all agencies operating here to conduct their work with respect for those values. We also recognize the emotional and economic impact these operations can have on families, neighborhoods, and local businesses. Charlotte is a diverse, vibrant city, and when any part of our community feels threatened or destabilized, it affects us all.

“I appreciate that the community members who gathered to make their voices heard did so peacefully. Peaceful protest is a vital part of our democracy, and your commitment to expressing your concerns while protecting the safety of our community reflects the best of our city.

“To everyone in Charlotte who is feeling anxious or fearful: you are not alone. Your city stands with you. We will continue working with community leaders, legal advocates, and service providers to make sure that resources, information, and support remain available. We are actively working with our partners to determine what more we can do to support our community while working within complicated legal boundaries.

“Our strength as a city comes from our unity and our shared commitment to one another. We will meet this moment together—with calm, compassion, and a steadfast dedication to the rights and well-being of all who call Charlotte home.”

Stay tuned for coverage of that meeting and continued coverage of the CBP presence in Charlotte. 

Read more: CBP Activates in Charlotte as Community Members Rally in Protest