Open Letter To Worcester Officials Concerning Eureka Street Incident
NOTE: This letter was originally intended to be delivered by me in-person at the Worcester City Hall on Tuesday, May 13, in response to the incident on May 8 on Eureka Street in Worcester where ICE agents kidnapped a woman off the street without a warrant. Worcester Police were called by ICE to intervene, and they broke up the crowd and arrested several more people, including a city councilor and a candidate for school committee. WPD had been instructed to avoid assisting ICE with raids, and yet they ignored that order.
Several local groups have organized a peaceful protest to take place outside the rally at 5:30 at Worcester City Hall. In response, the city council will close city hall and hold a virtual meeting instead. Their statement cited a “safety concern” and said the meeting would be held virtually “out of an abundance of caution.” This act of cowardice is unaccepted. It amplifies the lie that the pro-democracy protests are dangerous, and it should be seen as a refusal to hear the voices of constituents.
Echoing the sentiments in the original letter, this will make everything worse.
To the City Council, City Manager Batista, and Police Chief Saucier,
I want to start by recognizing how difficult it is to be a police officer in 2025. You carry the burden of a broken system, and you serve a public that often sees you through the lens of injustices committed far from here. The people of Worcester are your neighbors, your community. We all want better relations between us.
But antagonizing your community because of a federal government that’s out of control will only endanger your officers and the people they’re sworn to protect.
There are forces moving now that are bigger than anyone in this room. Armed federal agents are being deployed to our city to detain people who have committed no crimes — making arrests without warrants, tearing families apart, violating the Constitution. You may disagree with my political assessment, but it doesn’t matter — the people of Worcester will not stand for this. We will not allow ICE to continue illegal, immoral, unconstitutional actions in our streets.
Your officers were wisely told not to get involved. But those orders were ignored.
City Manager Batista’s first public statement said protesters called the police. That was false. Only ICE called — and per policy, WPD should not have responded.
ICE will return. And next time, there won’t be 20 protesters — there will be 200. Or 2,000. What happens when your officers are outnumbered 500 to 1? As a journalist I spent 15 years covering revolutions in Syria and Ukraine. I’ve seen what happens when government forces escalate against their own people. You don’t want that. None of us do.
So prevent it.
We need a clear non-cooperation policy with ICE, backed by real training and accountability. We need transparency from Chief Saucier and truth from City Manager Batista — not spin, especially in light of the January Justice Department allegations that have still gone largely unaddressed. De-escalation starts with honesty.
De-escalation begins with accountability. That’s how we protect our community — and your officers — from the next crisis. And, not for nothing, it's also the only way the members of this Council get to keep your jobs.
Thank you.
