Federal agents detain a man in a parking lot in the Avondale neighborhood following a confrontation during immigration raids, after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered increased federal law enforcement presence to assist in crime prevention, in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., October 25, 2025. REUTERS/Jim Vondruska
A federal immigration agent brandished a gun at a protester while taunting him, according to a newly filed civil rights lawsuit.
According to Gregory Royal Pratt of the Chicago Tribune, the agent "pointed a gun at a U.S. citizen protesting and told him 'bang, bang,' and 'you’re dead liberal.'"
The citizen in question is identified by the suit as Chris Gentry, "a combat veteran who was lawfully standing on the side of the road voicing his opposition as agents were driving by in their vehicles."
American Immigration Council senior fellow Aaron Reichlin-Melnick was aghast at this interaction — and warned in a post on X, "DHS has to understand that it’s playing with fire by refusing accountability for officer misconduct like this. People are being completely radicalized by interactions like this."
Protests have flared up around the country in response to escalating enforcement actions, often carried out by masked and heavily armed agents with no identifying information, against immigrants minding their own business.
Chicago, in particular, has become ground zero as Trump has sent agents to the city, ostensibly as part of a national crime-fighting initiative.
In another high-profile incident earlier this month, a Chicago pastor who had shown up to protest federal immigration enforcement was shot in the head by a pepper ball.