A northern border town, neighboring the Akwesasne Mohawk territory, makes it known that “No one is illegal on stolen land.” On June 11th, many residents of Massena, N.Y stood alongside the people of Akwesasne, to voice their concerns about the recent ICE raids that have taken places in and around Massena.
“On Wednesday, the people of Massena, in New York’s rural North Country, came out in force to demand ICE get out of our community and stop the deportations! Among the diverse attendants were members of the Akwesasne Nation who made it clear that no one is illegal on stolen land!
As ICE ramps up their campaign of terror — ripping apart families, neighborhoods, and communities— the people are not backing down! Over the past two days, ICE has carried out raids targeting local businesses in this small town. Far from protecting our community, ICE is endangering it and the people will not stand for it.
The people united will defend immigrant families!
¡El pueblo unido defenderá a las familias inmigrantes!” Reads a public statement made by Party for Socialism and Liberation, who took the lead in organizing an emergency protest to voice concerns of the recent ICE raids that have taken place throughout what is now known as the “United States of America”.
” So, it was kind of a collaborative effort; there was someone on my e-mail list who reached out to me concerned about the ice raids that were going on, and especially with National Guard being deployed.” says organizer, Mckay Burley.
“She reached out to me concerned and from there, the main organizers was definitely Party for Socialism and Liberation. We brought all the supplies, and we did most of the marshalling just for people’s safety. Some folks who helped to blast the message out included North Country neighbors Action Network, and then just sharing it to all my social media, a lot of people picked it up from there.”
https://www.latimes.com/delos/newsletter/2025-06-13/los-angeles-ice-protests-downtown-immigration
A large number of people were present during the protest on June 11th, with many being from the Akwesasne Mohawk territory, which straddles the international border of what is now known as Canada and the U.S.
The people of Akwesasne have become accustomed to the presence of border patrol and homeland security on Mohawk territory; but the recent ICE raids is something many will not stand for. With Massena N.Y. being a part of a recent land claim; the U.S government must tread lightly when attempting to enforce immigration laws on Mohawk Territory.
