A massive immigration operation is happening in Memphis.
asserted
operation → happen → Memphis
It’s been underway for just under a year now—hundreds of arrests, streets filled with officers.
asserted
It → fill → officers
But most people I talk with have never heard of it.
asserted
I → talk → it
As I previously documented for this magazine, the occupation of one of America’s largest majority-Black cities began last September: ICE arrived in Memphis along with more than a dozen local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies.
asserted
ICE → document → agencies
Today, more than 1,200 officers are still stationed there as part of the Memphis Safe Task Force, according to a spokesperson from the US Marshals Service.
uncertain
officers → station → Service
You might not have heard about this just because there’s a lot going on (gestures everywhere).
uncertain
You → hear → this
Also, Tennessee’s Republican governor supports the task force, and the Trump administration has framed it as a crime-fighting operation rather than an immigration operation, so it’s gotten less coverage than, say, ICE’s actions in Minneapolis.
asserted
it → support → Minneapolis
But there’s another reason why this surge hasn’t gotten much attention: It’s harder to record ICE in Tennessee than it is in many states.
asserted
it → ’ → states
Just ask Hunter Demster, who runs a soup kitchen and has spent the last year driving around Memphis with his phone, trying to document immigration arrests so he can post the videos online.
asserted
he → ask → videos
With help from the ACLU, he and other activists sued the task force in May for allegedly violating their First Amendment rights to record by, among other measures, invoking Tennessee’s Halo Law.
uncertain
he → sue → Law
Passed last year, the Halo Law makes it a crime for someone to come within 25 feet of an officer after they’ve been warned to step away.
asserted
they → pass → officer
Demster’s lawsuit accuses agents of using the statute inappropriately.
asserted
lawsuit → accuse → statute
Now he’s sharing evidence to show what he means.
asserted
he → share → what
In a video published this week, you can watch as Demster records a group of federal officers standing on the side of the road.
asserted
Demster → publish → road
He’s there for 20 minutes before they pull a man out of a ditch to make an arrest.
asserted
they → ’ → arrest
Demster tries to capture the moment, taking care to remain 25 feet away, according to his court declaration.
uncertain
Demster → try → declaration
But the officers aren’t satisfied—they want him back even farther.
asserted
him → want → ?
“I am filming, I am not impeding, I am not doing anything!” Demster yells as an officer continues walking toward him and away from the scene, forcing him so far back that he can no longer see or hear what’s happening.
asserted
what → film → him
Eventually, Demster, who curses in frustration, refuses to retreat any more and finds himself tackled and handcuffed.
asserted
himself → curse → frustration
This second video, shot from across the street, shows another view of the encounter.
asserted
video → shoot → encounter
Since the task force began last year, officers have invoked the Halo Law against Demster dozens of times, according to the lawsuit.
uncertain
officers → begin → lawsuit
Other community members have similar stories.
asserted
members → have → stories
“This lawsuit is laying out partially why you aren’t hearing as much from Memphis,” Demster told me a few months ago.
asserted
Demster → lay → me
A handful of other states have passed similar laws requiring a buffer zone around police; courts recently struck these laws down in Indiana and Louisiana because they were too vague.
asserted
they → pass → Indiana
In June, a bill was introduced in Congress to help people sue federal officers who violate their right to record.
asserted
who → introduce → right
One of the lawmakers behind the bill, Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost (D-Florida), cited the situation in Memphis as inspiration.
asserted
One → cite → inspiration
The Aporia
