Update: On Monday, U.S. District Judge Stephen Locher lifted his order prohibiting ICE from removing José Yugar-Cruz from Iowa. Locher wrote that an April 18 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court left him “little choice” in the case, and ICE can now proceed to deport Yugar-Cruz to the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country in […]
Trump administration
Posted inCommunity/News
Judge orders hearing for ICE detainee in Polk County Jail after immigration officials fail to comply with two previous orders for a hearing
For the third time, a judge in Iowa has ordered the federal government to provide a bond hearing for a truck driver detained 10 weeks ago by the Iowa State Patrol and immigration officials. U.S. District Judge Stephen H. Locher ruled this week that the government must provide a hearing at which truck driver Suraj […]
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‘Exactly what asylum law is meant to stop’: ICE again seizes Bolivian man ordered released in January, plans to deport him to Africa
Three months after a federal judge ordered ICE to release José Yugar-Cruz from Muscatine County Jail, ICE has detained the 36-year-old asylum seeker from Bolivia again. ICE has not accused Yugar-Cruz, who has no criminal record, of violating the terms of his release or any other infractions. ICE plans to deport him to the Democratic […]
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Iowa can now fully enforce its ‘don’t say gay’ and school book ban law, after appeals court vacates injunctions
Iowa can now enforce all parts of SF 496 — commonly known as the “don’t say gay” bill because of its provisions prohibiting references to LGBTQ topics in K-6 schools, requiring written parental permission to use a student’s preferred pronouns or name if it is does not match the gender listed in school records, and […]
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UI professor and Iowa City local for 25 years sues Trump administration for canceling his, his wife’s citizenship oaths
“Twenty-six years ago, I touched down at Eastern Iowa Airport,” Dr. Sunday Goshit told the people gathered on the Ped Mall Friday morning. Goshit, an adjunct assistant professor of International Studies at the University of Iowa and an instructor of Intercultural Competence at Kirkwood Community College, recalled how he arrived in Iowa “with a suitcase […]
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‘No Kings’ returns on Saturday, and more Iowa cities will be protesting Trump policies than ever
“No Kings” protests return on Saturday, with more than 3,000 events scheduled nationwide. Organizers say they anticipate the March 28 events to be the biggest day of protest in American history. In Iowa, the number of communities participating in No Kings has grown with every protest, from 33 last June to 40 in October 2025. […]
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To cover Medicaid funding gap left by Congress, Iowa House passes bill to raise tax on HMOs; Democrats warn health insurance premiums will spike
The Iowa House passed a bill Thursday retroactively raising the premium tax rate for health maintenance organizations (HMOs) to make up for a Medicaid budget shortfall — a move Democrats and insurers said would raise healthcare costs for all Iowans, but Republicans argued was needed to draw down federal funding. HF 2739, approved on a […]
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On supply runs to Minneapolis, Iowa City local Charlie Morris saw ICE terror, mass resistance efforts firsthand
On Sunday, Feb. 15, a van with tinted windows sat in the median of an expressway 10 minutes outside Minneapolis. It idled in a Michigan left usually reserved for law enforcement personnel, one that allows for quick pull-outs and pull-overs. But unlike police cars, this van didn’t have any lights or sirens — it was […]
Posted inCentral Iowa
Another Iowa soldier killed in Operation Epic Fury identified
Major Jeffrey O’Brien of Waukee was one of the six service members killed in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait, “during an unmanned aircraft system attack,” the U.S. Army Reserve Command said in a news release on Wednesday. Like the four soldiers killed in the attack identified by the Pentagon on Tuesday, O’Brien served in the 103rd Sustainment […]
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Drake University student Declan Coady among six service members killed in Kuwait on March 1
Sgt. Declan Coady of West Des Moines was killed on Sunday while serving in Operation Epic Fury, the Pentagon announced on Wednesday. The 20-year-old Army Reservist was one of six members of the Des Moines-based 103rd Sustainment Command killed on March 1, in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait, “during an unmanned aircraft system attack,” according to the […]
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Protesters sing hymns inside Coralville Target as part of nationwide campaign pressuring the company to change its ICE stance
Emily Patton was standing outside the Target at Coral Ridge Mall a little before 2 p.m. on Sunday, holding an American flag and a sign with a simple, direct message: “ICE OUT!” Patton had driven in from Wilton to participate in a protest aimed at the Target Corporation and its relationship with ICE. “Early on, […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Iowa City students walk out of class to protest ICE
Students from Iowa City West High School gathered on the Pentacrest Thursday afternoon after walking out of classes to protest the actions of ICE and the Trump administration’s immigration policies. They were joined by students from City High and Southeast Middle School, as well as students from the University of Iowa and other supporters outraged […]
