When the Department of Homeland Security launched its “Operation Midway Blitz,” vowing to “target the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens in Chicago,” it said the operation was “in honor of” slain Katie Abraham.
The 20-year-old university student from Glenview, Illinois, was killed in January in an alleged DUI hit-and-run. An undocumented immigrant, Julio Cucul Bol, 29, faces charges including leaving the scene of a fatal crash and reckless homicide.
In early September, Katie’s photograph was used by the Trump administration to promote the immigration crackdown in the Windy City—even though the incident occurred 150 miles away, in Urbana—with the president himself holding up a picture of Katie in a White House press conference to launch the operation.
But now, with Chicago kids separated from their parents on the way to school and military operations terrorizing families in their own homes as part of Operation Midway Blitz, Katie’s grieving mother has decided to speak out to say enough is enough: “Katie would not have wanted this.”
In an emotional open letter printed in the Chicago Tribune, Denise Lorence said she could “no longer stay silent” about her daughter’s name being co-opted for something she would have detested.
Painting a picture of a young woman “full of compassion and empathy, and able to see the big picture beyond her years,” Lorence said of Katie: “She was always looking out for others and saw the positive in all situations.
“Katie avoided confrontation and tension. She had never spoken out on a political agenda; she was not an activist. She did not choose to be thrust into this political spotlight to advance an operation she knew nothing about.
“[As someone with] compassion and empathy… Katie would not want to be associated with an operation in which kids witness their parents being taken into custody on their way to or from school. She wouldn’t support scaring kids with the use of military efforts in their neighborhoods or in their apartment buildings.
“With each passing day, concerns about Operation Midway Blitz continue to mount. Katie would not want to be associated with this, taking place in a city she celebrated and felt safe in—it just isn’t consistent with who she was.”
Since the beginning of Operation Midway Blitz—which DHS repeatedly stated is “in honor of Katie Abraham”—the department has hailed “more than 1,500 arrests” as part of the immigration crackdown in Chicago, though the numbers are disputed.
What is less in dispute is that the department, led by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, has used hardline military and policing tactics that have horrified many in the city and beyond—including Katie’s mother.
On Oct. 1, 37 people were taken into custody in a predawn raid on a South Shore high-rise in what the Chicago Sun-Times described as a “violent show of force,” with residents describing children pulled from their ransacked homes and elderly residents zip-tied outside.
DHS later promoted a slick montage trumpeting “900 arrests,” using footage from that sweep—an episode witnesses said included “kids coming out buck naked,” and a U.S. citizen held for hours in zip ties before being released.
Chicago officials and advocates have blasted the militarized posture that has fanned fear and protest in the city—and led Lorence to speak out on behalf of her late daughter.
Lorence said she had only found out Katie’s case was being used to front Operation Midway Blitz after it was announced by DHS, in a situation she said had been complicated by the fact that Katie’s father and his wife had given their blessing. She said she had not spoken up before because she “hoped it would go away” and that Katie’s “name wouldn’t be associated with this operation in perpetuity.”
But, with Operation Midway Blitz now six weeks in and showing no sign of abating, and DHS continuing to use Katie’s case as its raison d’être, Lorence said she felt she had no choice but to speak out.
“Losing a child unlocked a pain I never knew existed. Losing a child to a crime adds to the depths of despair. Having my child’s legacy be associated with a politically charged and controversial operation instead of the positivity and light she contributed to those within her community is simply unbearable.
“When you search my daughter’s name, you won’t find much about who she was. You will find how she is associated with the federal immigration enforcement campaign ‘Operation Midway Blitz.’
“Association with the operation’s actions is not a positive reflection of who [Katie] was. I taught Katie to advocate for herself, and as heartbreaking as it is, Katie is no longer here to advocate for herself because of a crime that took place 150 miles from Chicago.”
Lorence added: “She cannot advocate for herself and stand up to say, ‘I am not a political pawn.’ So I am here for her. Katie Abraham is my daughter, and I am reclaiming her legacy.”
The Daily Beast has contacted DHS to ask why it did not seek permission from Lorence to use Katie’s name to promote Operation Midway Blitz, or even let her know that it was doing so before announcing it publicly.
The Beast also asked DHS whether it would stop using Katie’s name in association with the operation, now that her mother had requested that.
In response, DHS sent a statement from Katie’s father, Joe Abraham, who said Katie had been “killed in Illinois by a criminal illegal alien drunk driver who should have never been in our country.”
He added: “Sanctuary policies helped kill Katie. As compassionate as she was, Katie would not sacrifice other people’s lives just for the sake of bringing in illegals. I gave my permission to conduct Operation Midway Blitz in Katie’s honor, and I stand by it.”
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