Defend Sanctuary Policies and Spaces
Muslims for Just Futures in collaboration with our MJF Legal Network and partners will be utilizing this page to provide updates on attacks on sanctuary cities and spaces.
Update: January 21st | 6:17pm CT
The Trump Administration has announced that they have rescinded the prior policy of avoiding immigration arrests in places that are considered "sensitive," like schools, places of worship, hospitals, clinics, relief centers like shelters, funerals, weddings, other public religious ceremonies, and at protests and rallies.
For now, remember that you still have rights regardless of their policy. Even in these "sensitive" locations, if there are places where members of the public cannot enter (for e.g. patient rooms at hospitals, "employees only" rooms, etc.), ICE cannot enter without a valid judicial warrant.
Community Guidance
1) We encourage organizers and individuals engaged in critical community defense efforts take these shifts into account as they develop and implement plans for rapid response.
2) Download our KYR poster, place it outside any private space that is not open to the public, and review the script in the back so you can respond if ICE shows up.
Available at bit.ly/ImmigrationKYR
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.
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. 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.
Updated February 6th
Muslims for Just Futures Condemns Federal Lawsuit Targeting Illinois and Chicago’s Sanctuary Protections
The federal government has initiated a legal assault on Chicago, Illinois, and Cook County, targeting essential sanctuary protections through a DOJ lawsuit that could undermine sanctuary policies nationwide, setting a dangerous precedent. This legal challenge by the Department of Justice is part of a broader strategy to criminalize immigrant communities, undermine local autonomy, and force compliance with Trump’s authoritarian and mass deportation agenda. The Memo on Sanctuary Jurisdictions Directives and this lawsuit work in tandem to target Sanctuary cities and punish the most marginalized immigrant communities.
Read MJF’s statement and analysis below.
