Protests in Houston continue over ICE killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo
Hundreds in Houston demand justice for 52-year-old Mexican man shot by an ICE agent on July 7. Protesters call for a city shutdown on July 24.
Protests in Houston, Texas, have entered a second week following the fatal shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old Mexican national, by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent on July 7. On Sunday, hundreds of demonstrators gathered at Ervan Chew Park and briefly blocked a bridge on Dunlavy Street, holding signs that read “Abolish ICE” and “Justice for Lorenzo.”
Salgado Araujo was killed while driving his construction crew to a worksite. ICE claimed that the victim attempted to ram an agent, who fired in self-defense. However, a statement from the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas last Thursday made no mention of a collision between Salgado Araujo’s van and a law enforcement vehicle, nor did it explicitly state that the officer feared for his life.
An activist from the Party for Socialism and Liberation called for further protests to shut down the city, announcing a “shutdown” scheduled for Friday, July 24. “We cannot just sit here and let ICE hunt and murder more of our daughters, our brothers, our uncles. If we want justice, we have to demand it,” she said.
The protests come amid mounting scrutiny of President Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown. According to the Associated Press, encounters with ICE have resulted in at least 10 deaths since the start of Trump’s second term last year, including two in the days after Salgado Araujo’s killing in Maine and Florida.
In Maine, Joan Sebastian Duran Guerrero, a 26-year-old Colombian man, was shot during a traffic stop. His family paid tribute to the father of a three-year-old, saying he still had “many dreams to fulfill.” Democratic lawmakers have demanded an investigation into ICE’s hiring practices after it was alleged that the officer responsible had a history of mental health issues and had subjected his ex-wife to violent behavior. Congressman Bennie Thompson said the alleged history “directly call[s] into question the supposed vetting and training ICE does of its recruits.”
Following the killings, Trump administration border czar Tom Homan announced a “short pause” on traffic stops and said that ICE will now require at least one agent to wear a body camera during vehicle stops. “I want the American people to see what the officers saw when they took that action,” he told Fox & Friends Weekend. Trump, however, urged the agency to continue traffic stops, posting on Truth Social: “We must be strong, tough, and smart, and we CANNOT give up one of I.C.E.'s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!”
Since the start of Trump’s immigration crackdown, at least 13 people have been wounded, according to The Trace. Human Rights Watch reports at least 52 deaths in ICE detention. As of January 2026, ICE had deported over 540,000 people.
