Chicago City Council votes to block change to Welcoming City Ordinance
CHICAGO - The Chicago City Council voted to block a proposal to allow city police to cooperate more with federal immigration enforcement on Wednesday.
Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th Ward) and Silvia Tabares (23rd Ward) proposed the change to the city’s so-called Welcoming City Ordinance.
The proposal was brought up for consideration by Lopez, but Ald. Jessica Fuentes (36th Ward) moved to table the issue. The council voted 39-11 to table it, essentially killing the measure.
A controversial proposal
The backstory:
Lopez and Tabares proposed the change as far back as 2023.
The existing law limits the Chicago Police Department's cooperation with federal law enforcement officials.
The council members argued changing the law to allow police to report individuals involved in serious criminal activity will keep immigrant communities safer. They said without local help, federal agents might target entire communities, leading to collateral deportations.
Opponents of changing the existing law say keeping local officers largely out of immigration enforcement fosters trust between immigrant communities and police.
Big picture view:
The proposed change comes as President-elect Donald Trump is just days from taking office again after promising to deport millions of undocumented immigrants across the country.
Thousands of migrants and asylum seekers have also arrived to Chicago since late 2022 when southern state governors began bussing them to Democratic-controlled cities. The crisis has stretched the city's resources.
Legal concerns
Dig deeper:
The proposed change sparked a backlash from opponents, including over constitutional concerns that such a change could lead to violations of due process protections.
The Illinois Attorney General’s Office also weighed in saying the change would have created potential conflicts with state law, is "fraught" with due process issues, and could lead to unintended consequences like racial profiling.
A spokesperson for the attorney general said state law does not prohibit Chicago police from cooperating with federal law enforcement on criminal investigations.