Jose Montoya and Brian Morales made a six-hour journey from Columbus, Ohio, to Chicago to attend the Sueños Music Festival this week, an event they have cherished since its inception in 2022.
This year, however, they traveled alone, without their usual group of six friends, all of whom hesitated to make the trip due to fears of potential federal immigration enforcement targeting the festival.
Montoya expressed the sentiment shared by many in their community: “A lot of people didn’t come in because of it. They didn’t want to risk it; it’s too scary. … [But] I’m not giving up.”
Despite these fears, thousands still lined up to enter the festival, with queues stretching from Van Buren Street and Michigan Avenue to Jackson and Columbus Drives before the gates opened Saturday morning.
According to the festival’s website, about 95% of the tickets had been sold out by Saturday. The inaugural event drew more than 80,000 attendees over two days, while last year saw over 60,000 participants each day, even with severe weather disruptions.
Organizers of the festival were not available for comment at the time.
As U.S. citizens, Montoya and Morales felt somewhat more secure attending the event, yet they remained apprehensive due to recent arrests of American citizens by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
Montoya characterized their attendance as a way of testing the atmosphere for their friends who stayed behind. “I’m not giving up, I’ll fight for my people. Strength in numbers,” he asserted.
The Sueños Music Festival comes on the heels of the cancellation of Michelada Fest earlier in the month, which had been scheduled for July 19-20 at Oakwood Beach. Organizers cited the “rapidly changing political climate” and visa concerns for international artists as reasons for the event’s cancellation.
This cancellation is part of a broader trend of anxiety in the community that even dampened this year’s Cinco de Mayo celebrations in Little Village, leading to a lack of parades or festivities on the traditionally festive 26th Street. The fear surrounding immigration enforcement has been so palpable that it has even resulted in some Chicagoans missing essential medical appointments.
Aware of these challenges, Montoya noted that he and Morales intentionally sought to avoid heavily Latino neighborhoods during their trip. “We’re not trying to get in some B.S., so what can you do?” he remarked.
Jasmine Arciga, a lifelong resident of Little Village, observed a noticeable decline in foot traffic as community members grappled with the apprehensions surrounding the targeted immigration raids that marked the Trump administration’s policies.
In recent days, anxiety has surged as plainclothes ICE agents arrested immigrants outside immigration court hearings in Chicago and across the United States.
Reflecting on the subdued Cinco de Mayo festivities, Arciga hopes that the upcoming Mexican Independence Day in September will reveal whether fears of enforcement will continue to quash community spirit.
“It was very noticeable; people were scared to go outside,” she said. “But independence day will be the real test.”
Arciga noted that Facebook discussions regarding Sueños have been filled with concerns about potential ICE presence at the festival, yet she found no definitive answers to ease those worries.
“People are worried about it, especially with some of the artists not getting visas,” she mentioned, referencing the canceled Michelada Fest.
Despite such apprehensions, the Sueños Music Festival drew a hopeful crowd. Lupe Berrera, a 19-year-old resident of Little Village, bought a Mexican flag from a vendor shortly after arriving at the festival.
Many festival-goers proudly waved flags representing their heritage from Colombia, Puerto Rico, and Mexico as they walked through the festival grounds.
Berrera, who recently relocated to Little Village from Brighton Park, expressed that the community had turned into a “ghost town” due to the ongoing fear. Still, the vibrant atmosphere of Sueños offered her a comforting escape.
“I’m really big with my culture. I like expressing it and where I come from,” Berrera stated. “It feels like I’m finally able to express something I haven’t been able to with everything going on. … It’s important to come together as a community and celebrate our roots.”
The strong turnout at the festival, despite the prevailing fears, serves as a reminder of the resilience and unity within the community, even in challenging times.
image source from：https://chicago.suntimes.com/suenos-music-festival/2025/05/24/suenos-festival-attendance-immigration-enforcement-music-chicago
