Tear gas, fear and federal secrecy: How Chicago journalists are covering Trump’s immigration policies while living through them

Ever since federal agents arrived in Chicago in early September, “typical is no longer a thing,” said Block Club Chicago reporter Francia Garcia Hernandez.

The tips pour in at all hours: sightings of agents in all parts of Chicago. Many of them are masked, in the city to find undocumented immigrants. They move quickly, but sometimes, Garcia Hernandez — whose beat is the largely Latino neighborhoods of Pilsen, Little Village and Back of the Yards but whose coverage area has since expanded — gathers just enough information to make it to the aftermath of a raid.

“There’s usually a lot of emotions,” Garcia Hernandez said. “Many of my sources are afraid. Many of them are still in shock. Many of them refrain from sharing their names or disclosing their identities because of fear of being targeted.”

Operation Midway Blitz — a federal operation run by the Department of Homeland Security — has put the entire city on edge since its start Sept. 8. As agents tear gas crowds, chase people down streets and raid homes, local journalists are left scrambling to cover a wide-ranging operation that affects their own communities. It is relentless work, made more difficult by the federal government’s unpredictability and lack of transparency. Sometimes, the journalists themselves become the news. Federal agents have detained and used riot control weapons like pepper balls and rubber pellets against media workers.