How a Custom Lowrider Bike Workshop is Creating Safe Space for Teens Targeted by ICE Raids

In a gritty corner of Chicago’s Belmont Cragin neighborhood, a nonprofit workshop is quietly pushing back against the harsh realities faced by immigrant teens under the Trump administration’s ramped-up immigration enforcement. Bikes & Roses, located at 4600 W. Palmer St., is more than a bike repair shop. It is a lifeline for young people living in fear of ICE raids and racial profiling.

Program coordinator Francisco “Paco” Rubio explains that the workshop is a place where teens—many of whom are immigrants or children of immigrants—can gain mechanical skills, express their identities, and build community. “If you come into the shop, you’re asked to help us build bikes to donate to the local community. And in return, we provide help with experienced mechanics, like myself, or one of the youths that has already been in the program,” Rubio said.

The stakes are high. Following last year’s surge in federal immigration crackdowns, many youths no longer feel safe leaving their homes. “There’s a lot of mistreatment,” says 16-year-old Alyssa Jurado, a participant. “That has become a bigger issue, as to where a lot of us don’t feel safe to leave our houses.”

Despite the climate of fear, Bikes & Roses chose to expand its programs rather than shut down, providing a rare haven for vulnerable teens. Inside the workshop, the atmosphere buzzes with the sounds of conversation, music, and the clinking of tools. Teens collaborate and learn from one another, fostering a sense of solidarity and resilience.

The nonprofit traces its roots to 2011 when Communities United, a racial justice group, sought to create safe after-school spaces for youth. Today, the workshop’s latest project involves teens designing custom lowrider bicycles to ride in Chicago’s May Day rally, a march known for its immigrant rights activism.

Each bike tells a story. Alyssa’s bike, emblazoned with the phrase “with faith and without fear” in Spanish, features roses symbolizing her Mexican heritage and a Colombian flag honoring her family’s background. Juan, a 14-year-old immigrant from Ecuador who asked to withhold his last name due to immigration concerns, incorporates pre-Columbian Indigenous glyphs and imagery from his hometown Quito. “This bike is a story about where we came from and the differences in where we are now,” Juan said. “I’d like my bike to not just represent me, but all Latinos. To show that yes, we can make it here.”

For many participants, this is their first experience using art and craftsmanship to make “statement bikes” that reflect their identities and struggles. Artistic Coordinator Natalia Virafuentes guides the teens in connecting their pasts to their present through their designs.

Isabella Lopez, 15, is crafting a bike that honors her Puerto Rican and Mexican roots and her family’s journey to Chicago. “I’m very proud of my roots and love both sides of my culture. And I want to display that on the bike, showing that I’m not going back down,” Lopez said. “I’m going to be strong. I’m going to take leadership and show that I can do more.”

In a time when immigrant communities are under siege, Bikes & Roses offers more than bike repairs—it offers hope, identity, and a platform for resistance. Through creativity and community, these teens are reclaiming their narratives and riding toward a future where fear does not define them.