Traveling ‘Immigrant Crosses’ memorial of ICE-involved deaths launches in Illinois

A traveling memorial consisting of more than 100 white wooden crosses has launched in Illinois to honor people who died in immigration detention or during enforcement operations since 2020. Each three-foot by two-foot cross bears the name of a deceased individual.

Father Brendan Curran, a Dominican priest, helped establish a memorial in Franklin Park for Silverio Villegas González. Villegas González, a father of two, was shot and killed during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation on Sept. 12, 2025. His family filed a legal claim against the government on Oct. 8, 2026, alleging that employee misconduct caused his death.

The National Immigration Project reported that at least 28 people died in ICE custody in 2026 as of Oct. 5. In 2025, 33 people died in custody, which the organization identified as the highest number of deaths in two decades.