[permalink] Dozens, and then hundreds [ 1 | 2 | 3 ], of Chicago-area community members delayed, in dramatic fashion, a national anti-immigrant organization's meeting in Chicago's Arlington Heights suburb on the morning of October 15, 2005. Activists linked their bodies arm in arm to form a human chain at the gates of the school where a meeting of the Minuteman Project was slated to take place.

The protest, at the gates of the Christian Liberty Academy on Euclid Avenue, saw some 15 to 25 activists (at their height) form a human blockade three lines thick at the entrance to the conference. The number of protesters had significantly outnumbered Arlington Heights police, who called for additional backup from at least five other nearby suburbs.

The stakes increased dramatically around noon when some 400 anti-Minuteman-protesters from assorted communities in Chicago arrived via bus convoy. The barricade then dispersed to join the rally, with the intent to reconvene later that afternoon.

Soon after, a team of police officers physically isolated an activist who had stood on the front line of the barricade. Protesters surrounded the police and the attempted arrest and tried to pull the activist out of custody. At that point, more police arrived to enter the fray, leading to more activist arrests. Photos: [ 1 | 2]

The day ended abruptly around 1:40 PM when a bus load of riot police arrived to disperse the crowd.

Those arrested could be counted among the most outspoken activists, those targeted as "leaders" and "agitators" of the morning's barricade. All the arrestees were later released that evening. Comment here.

Chicago Indymedia Newswire coverage: iNo Pasaran! Stop the Minutemen! | Arrests In Arlington Heights | Report from the Chicago Anti-Minutemen Protest | Minutemen: Media Coverage Report | Another report from Minutemen protest

CIMC Radio: From the Trenches: Part I of the October 2005 show in MP3 format

Other Indymedia coverage: San Diego: Minuteman efforts | Arizona: Beyond the Minutemen | LA: Minuteman protests | Mexico: Cierre del Proyecto Minuteman | Indymedia US: Two People Reportedly Run Over by "Minutemen" Racists

Additional Information: South West Action to Resist the Minutemen | deleteTheBorder | Immigrant Solidarity Network: Minutemen Watch