Kat Abughazaleh, who has announced a campaign for Illinois' 9th Congressional District, carries yard signs into her brand-new campaign office in the Rogers Park neighborhood on May 6, 2025Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service/Getty Images

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice unsealed an indictment against six protesters—including 26-year-old Democratic congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh—for allegedly impeding an ICE officer outside of a federal immigration facility in Broadview, Illinois. The move is a stunning continuation of Trump’s weaponization of judicial and police power to crush dissent.

“This case is a major push by the Trump administration to criminalize protest and punish anyone who speaks out against them.”

Abughazaleh, a former Mother Jones video creator, is running a progressive campaign for the House seat currently held by 81-year-old Democratic Rep. Jan Schakowsky. In recent months, she has been an outspoken participant at........

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