Demonstrators gather outside Senator Todd Young’s office in Carmel to protest federal immigration enforcement policy

CARMEL, Ind. — Demonstrators gathered outside Senator Todd Young’s office in Carmel Sunday evening to protest federal immigration enforcement policy.

The protest — which was organized by the Indiana State AFL-CIO, Indivisible Central Indiana and the Indiana Undocumented Youth Alliance — was held on the sidewalks surrounding Young’s office. Protestors said the Carmel Police Department directed them out of the office parking lot and onto the adjacent sidewalks and streets.

“If this weren’t making a difference, we’d be allowed to park in the parking lot here,” said Carolyn Higginbotham of the Indy Action Coalition. “I mean, clearly we are getting under their skin with the kind of reaction that is saying ‘You can’t pull into our parking lot, you’ve gotta park on the side streets.’ It’s very clear that we are creating an impact.”

A press release protest organizers issued before the event indicated that demonstrators were gathering outside Young’s office contest President Donald Trump’s mass deportation efforts. In their release, organizers wrote that they were “horrified by the images of masked ICE agents turning the country we love into a police state.”

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents’ attire has become a talking point across the U.S. in recent weeks. According to Nexstar’s NewsNation, some ICE agents have begun to wear masks on the job, which has sparked national debate.

Higginbotham said demonstrators gathered at Young’s office on Sunday in hopes of sending a message to him and other politicians that can influence federal immigration policy in Washington D.C.

“We’re certainly wanting them to convey a message to the administration that we need to stop this nasty deportation effort,” Higginbotham said. “We need to cut back on what ICE is doing, the snatching of people off the streets, the denial of their due process rights, the level of fear they’re creating with a kind of militarized presence in our communities — which is really kind of making us a lot less safe.

“We have people showing up that are in camouflage outfits and masks snatching people off the streets, which makes people very afraid. They don’t actually understand who is law enforcement … That level of militarized presence and anonymity is really creating a lot of fear in our community. We’re really concerned that we’re spending our money on ICE and not on the kind of things that will actually improve our community.”

Photos of Sunday’s protest outside Senator Todd Young’s office in Carmel.

Before their demonstration began, event organizers also indicated that they were protesting the $45 billion in funding the federal government has set aside to build immigration detention facilities. According to NewsNation, the funding allocation was part of the “big, beautiful bill,” which was signed into law by Trump on July 4.

“Follow the truth,” said Brett Voorheis of the Indy AFL-CIO. “You know, folks behind us who are standing up, like myself, standing up today are here to speak the truth, are here to protect working families. We’re working to make sure that our government isn’t funding more detentions for immigrants.

“We’re here to make sure that we’re funding our schools and healthcare — make sure social security cuts and things like that that are under a serious microscope and are on the cutting board right now with our federal government.”

Sunday’s protest at Young’s office is not the first demonstration related to ICE and the Trump administration that has been held in Indiana in recent weeks.

Demonstrators gathered outside Gainbridge Fieldhouse ahead of Game 3 of the NBA Finals to protest federal immigration policy. Three billboards that have messages critical of the Marion County Sheriff’s work with ICE have also popped up around Indianapolis.

A “No Kings” protest was also held at the Indiana Statehouse in June. At that time, demonstrators were contesting the actions of Trump and a military parade that was held in Washington D.C.

Immigration-related protests have also popped up across the U.S. For more information on demonstrations that have been held across the country, click here.