While more visible in urban areas like Lewiston and Portland, the Trump administration’s hardline approach to immigration stops and detentions has also affected people in northern Maine as border patrol arrests reach record numbers.
In response, a growing number of Aroostook locals, including some who have never protested before, have participated in local demonstrations. January saw multiple anti-ICE protests in Houlton, Presque Isle, Caribou and Fort Fairfield, despite subzero temperatures. Most recently, about 30 showed up this weekend in Fort Kent.
Many northern Mainers, though, have gone beyond attending protests to become more supportive of and involved in their communities. Some have joined grassroots activist groups and attended ICE observer and de-escalation training. Others have offered mutual aid to neighbors and sent money to help immigrant families.
“The Trump administration has woken a lot of us up and we need to speak. We are outraged and we are so sad that this is what our administration is doing,” Houlton resident Mary Miller said. “It is dehumanizing and it is wrong. We need to write, we need to pray. We can’t stop. We need to continue to make our voices heard.”
Every Saturday at 1 p.m., members of the grassroots group Restore stand at the Houlton Peace Pole for justice, peace and democracy, said Miller, who organizes many of Restore’s actions.
Miller, who is new to public protest and activism, said that while many people have been doing this for years, she bets that there are a lot of people in The County who have not.
“I am not a protester from way back,” she said. “This year I am just waking up and deciding that it’s worth standing and making my voice heard and being out there.”
In October, the ACLU of Maine launched an investigation into a Houlton Sector Border Patrol traffic stop in May of a Latino couple on Fort Fairfield Road. Caribou resident Jamie Zilko filmed the encounter and informed people of their rights.
Others in The County are preparing to document federal agent actions.
A de-escalation training is planned from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 21, at the Turner Library in Presque Isle.
Last week, several local residents, including Miller, attended an ACLU and No Kings training called “Eyes on ICE Document and Record” to learn more about their legal rights to protest and record and how to stay safe while doing it, she said.
The recent federal immigration surge and Trump administration cutbacks have also heightened northern Mainers’ consciousness of community needs, Miller said.
Local groups like Restore are also trying to find ways to help the community, including offering aid to immigrants and others affected by the crackdowns. People are dropping groceries on porches, offering rides, volunteering at hospitals and food pantries and checking on neighbors, Miller said, adding she plans to volunteer more as well.
“Our desire to work toward meeting those needs is heightened,” she said. “[There is] a recognition of who we are together.”
The day after Minneapolis nurse Alex Pretti, a U.S. citizen, was shot by federal agents in January, a handful of Aroostook locals gathered outside the border patrol building on Route 1 north of Houlton to protest, said Chris Davis, Aroostook Organizers for Change communications director.
Others continued to drive past the Houlton Sector station, honking horns in reaction to the killing of Pretti and U.S. citizen Renee Good, a mother of three, she said. She added it was an unfortunate turning point that showed patterns of aggression.
Still, taking action in The County has its challenges, with everyone so geographically and physically separated, Davis said. The group spans the region and is trying to hold regular social meetings and supporting people’s mutual aid efforts. The next meeting is Feb. 7 at the Turner library and all are welcome.
Houlton resident Marilyn Roper is no stranger to peaceful civil protest, and even now at 90 she stands vigil on Saturdays at the Houlton Peace Pole when she is able. Rain, blustery wind or bitter cold has not stopped Roper, who has organized and attended multiple rallies and protests this year.
On Friday Roper said she was about to mail in $200 to the Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project and $200 to the American Civil Liberties Union to assist immigrants.
“For those of us elderly or far away from demonstrations, we are sending in donations,” Roper said.
This is a fearful time, and people in northern Maine might think they are disconnected, but they are not, Miller said.
“There’s people from northern Maine who went down to Lewiston,” she said. “We can also connect with other organizations nationally and be part of something that is empowering and effective.”
