Protesters gather around New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office to voice concerns about ICE

November 23, 2025

Bryan Alonso,

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Voices of anger and distraught were heard during the weekend, against the federal crackdown on illegal immigration happening recently in North Carolina.

A group of protestors gathered on Saturday evening at New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office. More than 50 people gathered to stand up against the raids happening in Charlotte and parts of the Triangle.

Cheyanne Dos Santos, one of the leaders of ILM Action Network that organized the event, says they are standing up for those who are afraid during these times, as well as people who are detained and held in the county jail.

“We are looking to stand up for any marginalized people who need to be spoken for and protected; whether that be socially or through action, and that is what we are here to prove,” she said.

Wednesday night, a Sheriff’s Office spokesman told WWAY that the facility had housed “federal inmates within the past 48 hours,” but because the Sheriff’s Office has federal contracts that allow them to house folks for ICE, the DEA, and Homeland Security, he could not confirm a report by a Raleigh media outlet that nine people arrested by ICE in Wake County had been taken to the New Hanover County Detention Center.

WWAY hasn’t been able to confirm any number of detainees held, but when Governor Josh Stein came to Wilmington this past week, he vented his frustrations about the level of communication he had with the federal agents, claiming that the agents had been causing widespread panic and not making the community safe.

Ashley Piña Hernandez is a daughter of an immigrant, and people like her are afraid and angry over the invasion of ICE.

“It makes me angry. I know undocumented immigrants are here, but the way I see it, people come here for a reason, they come for a better life, and a better life for their kids,” said Hernandez, adding, “I hope this makes a change. I hope people can look at this, and say, okay — there are people in the community that actually want there to be a difference.”