Chicago mayor, Lori Lightfoot, blocked ICE from working with the Chicago Police Department to detain residents.
What We Know:
- Lori Lightfoot blocked Immigration and Customs Enforcement from having access to the Chicago Police Department databases. She made this decision after news of possible raids happening in Chicago.
- The raids are supposed to begin on Sunday and the CPD will not give ICE the ammunition it needs. “They will not team up with ICE to detain any resident. We have also cut off ICE access from any CPD databases and that will remain permanent,” she said. Anthony Guglielmi, spokesperson for Chicago police said ICE will be shut out of the city’s Citizen and Law Enforcement Analysis and Reporting. This means they can’t see incident narratives, arrest information, crime mapping systems or other databases.
- It’s no secret that families are being ripped apart and detained at the border. Mayor Lightfoot refuses to make Chicago residents vulnerable to ICE agents by handing over their information. “Chicago is and will always be a welcoming city that will never tolerate ICE tearing our families apart,” she said.
- Some residents are worried because although ICE has no access to records, other federal agencies do. They fear these other agencies will work with ICE. Federal agencies need the information for criminal investigations and national homeless security functions according to Guglielmi.
We commend Mayor Lightfoot for choosing to protect those in her city during a time that is very hard for immigrant families.
