Day of Peaceful Protests in Colorado Ends with 18 Arrests

In response to growing national uproar over the Trump administration’s increased deportations, Denver joined other cities such as New York and Los Angeles in localized protests calling for the release of those who have been detained by ICE.  The emergency demonstration was co-organized by the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition and the Party for Socialism & Liberation, with the Denver chapter calling out the Trump administration’s “militarized” immigration crackdown. At around 5:30pm, crowds numbering from several hundred to over 1,000 gathered at the Capitol’s west steps. 

“I think that all across the country, people are really moved by the resistance that we’re seeing in Los Angeles,” a PSL organizer named Lillian told Yellow Scene Magazine. “We want to see an end to the deportations, and we want to see an end to the repression of people who are standing up for their rights and the rights of their communities.”

Organizers from PSL told Yellow Scene Magazine that they planned a simple march from the Capitol, cutting through downtown, stopping briefly on Stout St. for demonstrators to speak a second time, coming to a stop around 7 pm back at the Capitol. However, as speakers were addressing the crowd on the Capitol steps before marching, a subgroup of self-described anarchists began directing demonstrators into the street, blocking off Lincoln between Colfax and 14th. While a vast majority of demonstrators stayed near the Capitol until the more organized march towards Downtown, some within this breakaway group began marching towards Broadway. 

According to eyewitnesses, both the press and other protesters who followed this group intended to take the march onto I-25 to block traffic. Denver Police officers blocked on-ramps from protesters, and as the group of fifty approached, officers began to deploy smoke canisters and pepper balls into the small crowd. 

The Denver Police Department confirmed that 18 arrests were made in relation to the protests for the following: 

• Graffiti (3)
• Interference with Police Authority (1)
• Unlawful Throwing of Projectiles, Failure to Obey a Lawful Order (1)
• Obstruction of Streets, Failure to Obey a Lawful Order (7)
• Obstruction of Streets, Failure to Obey a Lawful Order, Interference with Police Authority (2)
• Second Degree Assault (1)
• Second Degree Assault of a Peace Officer (2)

Federal immigration enforcement in Colorado has been under fire following a series of controversial raids, including the March 2025 detention of longtime immigration advocate Jeanette Vizguerra. The arrest, which occurred outside her workplace in Denver, sent shockwaves through immigrant communities and civil rights groups alike, not just for its legal implications, but for what many are calling a calculated act of political retaliation. The Department of Homeland Security claims Vizguerra was deportable based on a years-old immigration violation, a misdemeanor stemming from reentering the country after a brief voluntary departure to Mexico in 2013. 

“This is about silencing dissent,” said Laura Lichter, Vizguerra’s attorney, who is now fighting her deportation in federal court. A judge has since issued a temporary stay, citing constitutional concerns and the irregularity of the order’s reinstatement.

Vizguerra’s arrest appears to be part of a pattern of intensified raids across Colorado this year. Activists say ICE has carried out coordinated enforcement actions in Denver, Aurora, and Greeley since January, sweeping up both individuals with prior convictions and others with no criminal record at all. Churches, homes, and job sites have been targeted, including locations previously considered “sensitive” under Obama-era guidelines. Those protections were rolled back under the Trump administration and have yet to be reinstated.

Denver Mayor Mike Johnston called the arrest “Putin-style persecution of political dissidents,” a rare rebuke from city leadership. At the state level, lawmakers like Senator Julie Gonzales have echoed the alarm, citing not only the human toll of the raids but also their chilling effect on immigrant-led political organizing. Protesters have held vigils outside the GEO-run Aurora ICE facility every week since Vizguerra’s detention. 

“We’re not just fighting for Jeanette — we’re fighting for the right to exist without fear,” said one organizer with the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition.

Gov. Jared Polis caught the ire of immigration advocates when he contradicted a law he recently signed, which was intended to protect immigrants in the state. That law, SB 25-276, was celebrated by immigrant communities and civil liberties groups for its sweeping restrictions on civil immigration enforcement. It barred local and state agencies from sharing sensitive personal information with ICE without a judicial warrant and made it illegal for agents to enter places such as schools, hospitals, and jails without prior court approval.  However, in late May, Polis directed state officials to comply with ICE’s subpoena, despite the lack of a judicial warrant. That decision triggered a whistleblower lawsuit from former state labor official Scott Moss, who claims the order violated the very law Polis had just signed. Moss argues that Polis’s move not only undermines the legal protections enshrined in SB 25-276 but also puts vulnerable families at risk of deportation and government surveillance. The data in question relates to sponsors of unaccompanied migrant children, often undocumented relatives who step forward to house and care for children released from federal custody. Immigrant rights organizations say sharing their information with ICE opens the door to punitive enforcement and family separation. 

Tensions over immigration enforcement in Colorado continue to escalate as grassroots organizers prepare for what they hope will be a powerful show of resistance this weekend. The upcoming “No Kings” protest, planned for Saturday, June 14, is being billed as a unified call against state-sanctioned deportations and the political doublespeak that enables them.