GR Rapid Response to ICE action dramatizes the horror of ICE violence by exposing the Avelo Airlines contract with ICE

On Saturday, a dozen activists took part in an action organized by GR Rapid Response to ICE. 

The action centered around the contract that Avelo Airlines signed with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to transport immigrants directly to El Salvador. Avelo Airlines is a small airline that launched in 2021 with a fleet of 20 aircraft. On May 12, Avelo Airlines became the first commercial airline to begin deportation flights, and running flights and hiring flight attendants in Mesa, AZ to fly people in ICE custody out of the country.

In March, it was announced that Avelo Airlines would be offering flights out of the Kent County Airport, with a few direct flights to North Carolina and Florida. GR Rapid Response to ICE began talking about organizing an action, but only if it would fit within the larger work to pressure Kent County to adopt a Sanctuary policy.

The action on Saturday was a low risk action, that involved handing out informational flyers and using street theater to dramatize the relationship between Avelo Airlines and ICE. You can watch the short video here below.

Street Theater is a creative tactic for social movement work, a tactic that was popularized by the Brazilian theater practitioner and political activist Augusto Boal. Using street theater also provides a more visual and emotive mechanism to communicate political realities, especially realities that are rooted in oppression.

The informational handout complimented the street theater, since it provided concrete information on Avelo Airlines, along with additional actions that people could take after knowing about the contract between ICE and Avelo Airlines. The handout lists numerous actions that people can participate in, making the action at tactic that leads to other actions. What follows is a list of actions that people can take:

1. Boycott Avelo Airlines – don’t purchase tickets from them and tell others to do the same.

2. Send a message to the Gerald R. Ford International Airport Authority Board to end their contract with Avelo Airlines grrboard@grr.org

3. Sign the Action Alert to get the Kent County Commission to adopt a Sanctuary policy tinyurl.com/KentCountySanctuary

4. Attend the July 24th Kent County Commission meeting to demand they adopt a Sanctuary policy – 8:30am in the County Building.

5. Join the work of Movimiento Cosecha and GR Rapid Response to ICE to get ICE out of Kent County by sending an Email to info@grrapidresponsetoice.org