Defend Chicago’s Sanctuary City Status: Take Action NOW!
Take Action!
Update: January 15th, 2025
The Chicago City Council decisively voted against Ordinance 2023-0004222, which sought to weaken Chicago’s sanctuary status and put our immigrant communities at risk. With a vote of 39-11, the majority of City Council members have voted to not weaken Chicago's existing Sanctuary ordinance. The ordinance would have opened the door for Chicago police to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement in specific cases, risking the safety and stability of nearly 790,000 non-citizens in our city. We are deeply heartened that our city leaders recognized the significant dangers of such a policy, especially given the Chicago Police Department’s troubling history with biased practices, including the flawed gang database that disproportionately targeted Black and Latino communities.
Overview
Muslims for Just Futures (MJF), a grassroots organization dedicated to building power in Muslim communities through collective care, organizing, and advocacy, has sent a letter to Chicago Alders urging them to vote NO on Ordinance 2023-0004222.
Alders Lopez and Tabares have proposed amendments that threaten Chicago’s sanctuary city protections by allowing city officials to cooperate with federal immigration officers in targeting individuals based on arrests or convictions. MJF is calling on its members and allies to take immediate action by contacting their Alders and demanding they reject this harmful ordinance.
Chicago’s sanctuary city protection (Welcoming City Ordinance) is under attack. Alders Lopez and Tabares have invoked Rule 41 that allows their proposed ordinance to come before full city council on January 15th for a vote. Their proposed Ordinance O2023-0004222 would permit city officials and agencies to cooperate with federal immigration officers, targeting individuals based on their arrests or convictions. This proposal blatantly aligns with the Trump Administration's anti-immigrant agenda and fulfills the incoming Trump’s border czar's promise to make Chicago a central hub for mass deportations.
Why Ordinance 2023-0004222 Must Be Rejected
Devastating Impact on Families
This ordinance paves the way for further eroding local protections for Chicago residents against abuses by ICE agents against local immigrant communities. Chicago is home to 1.7 million immigrants, and 790,000 non-citizens who are potentially at risk of deportation. Passing this ordinance would place millions at risk. Many Chicago households include members with mixed immigration statuses, making family separations, community trauma, and neighborhood instability inevitable consequences of this measure.
Proposals to weaken Chicago’s sanctuary status are rooted in a backdrop of rising xenophobia and anti-immigrant sentiment. Over the past 3 years, over 51,000 migrants have arrived in the city from the Southern border, many of the arrivals are stuck in limbo without adequate support. They are unhoused and face evictions, are prohibited from working legally and unable to return safely to their home countries. Furthermore, many of the city’s resources are shutting down for migrants. This particular ordinance would further exacerbate the existing anti-immigrant and refugee racism within the city and lead to increased targeting of immigrant, refugee, and asylum seekers. Immigrants are vital contributors to Chicago’s economy, making up 22% of Chicago’s labor force, and driving industries across various industries. Such ordinances also lead to destroying the trust between targeted communities and critical city services such as 911 and 311 services. Due to the fear of the involvement of ICE, community members are less likely to seek critical life saving services like emergency healthcare services and other critical services.
Protecting Chicago’s Sanctuary Laws
It's important to clarify that Chicago’s existing Sanctuary ordinance does not prevent federal agencies like ICE from operating independently within the city. Weakening existing sanctuary laws to enable the Chicago Police Department to function as an extension of ICE and federal law enforcement—operating at the behest of Trump’s agenda—does nothing to enhance the safety of Chicagoans. It only further erodes community faith in local elected officials that the local Council and government cannot serve as a protection from the state terror the Trump Administration is promising. Now, more than ever, it is critical to uphold the legacy of Chicago as a leader in being a home for immigrant communities, refugees, and asylum seekers fleeing violence as a result of the conditions created by US government policies and laws. We call on your office to reject Ordinance 2023-0004222 and reaffirm Chicago’s commitment to rejecting the scapegoating of undocumented communities and families, and resisting authoritarianism.
History of Abuse and Due Process Violations by Chicago Police Department
Alders Lopez and Tabares ordinance lists crimes such as involvement in gangs as one of the areas where CPD would collaborate with ICE for individuals arrested or convicted. It's critical to note that the Chicago Police Department’s gang database practices had faced widespread criticism for its inaccuracies, racial bias, and lack of transparency, disproportionately targeting Black and Latino individuals based on vague criteria such as style of dress or neighborhood of residence (UIC, Tracked and Targeted). A 2020 report by the Chicago Office of the Inspector General highlighted significant flaws, including outdated and erroneous entries, lack of oversight, and no clear process for individuals to challenge their inclusion (OIG Report, 2021). Public investigations revealed that the database, which at one point included almost 129,000 individuals, contained duplicate and unverifiable records. In response to public backlash and advocacy by the Erase the Database Coalition, the database was discontinued in 2023. However, it is deeply troubling that, despite years of evidence showing how the Chicago Police Department (CPD) has used labels like "gangs" to disproportionately target communities of color, such racially coded labeling could now be directed at immigrant communities. This approach risks paving the way for CPD to reintroduce a version of the Chicago gang database, this time with an emphasis on Black and Brown immigrant communities. Amid the current political climate, where immigrant communities are increasingly targeted through racially coded labels of criminality, the creation of such lists often leads to the inclusion of hundreds of thousands of names. These data and targeting lists risk being weaponized by administrations, such as the Trump Administration, to further marginalize immigrant communities. From proposals to implement Muslim and NSEERS registries to gang databases, these tools become long-term mechanisms for casting suspicion and perpetuating discrimination against immigrant populations.
Here’s how you can take action!
Use This Toolkit Here
Show Up and Speak Out at the Chicago City Council Meeting
When: January 15 at 10:00 AM (Show up earlier at 8 am to make a comment)
Where: City Hall, 121 N LaSalle St
Your voice matters—join others in demanding the council reject this dangerous ordinance. Public Comment Info: Arrive early—by 8:00 AM—to secure a spot in the public comment line. Important: No food, drinks, or large bags are allowed inside City Council Chambers. Use the toolkit above developed by Chicago advocates for email and phone scripts.
Flood Your Alderperson with Calls and Emails. Use this link to find your Alderperson’s contact information. Tell them loud and clear:
Reject Ordinance O2023-0004222.
Chicago must remain a sanctuary city.
Collaboration with federal immigration officers has no place in our city.
If you represent an organization, send an official organizational letter. Send an organizational letter to all Chicago Alders' offices to reject Ordinance O2023-0004222 .
