Resisting TYRANNY
Resisting TYRANNY
Standing up to ICE
Standing up to ICE
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Elected leaders across the country must do everything in their power to defend immigrants, protect our communities and our rights, and hold Trump and his team accountable. Over the past year, President Trump’s immigration officers have engaged in blatant racial discrimination, needless violence, and unlawful conduct. Mac LeBuhn is the only candidate in this race with a record of taking on ICE directly – and winning.
A Record of standing up to ICE
Mac LeBuhn has already passed laws protecting Chicagoans from ICE overreach. As a Senior Policy Advisor to Mayor Lori Lightfoot, he negotiated and drafted laws to block ICE from using Chicago databases and to stop ICE from working with the Chicago Police Department to carry out their raids. Over nearly a decade, he's collaborated with elected leaders, immigration attorneys, and community organizations to stand up to ICE. Mac has the knowledge, experience, and commitment to lead the fight against ICE again as state representative.
Mac has six key priorities he would purse as a state representative to protect our neighbors from ICE .
Establish a Special Prosecutor to Hold Lawless Agents Accountable
State and federal law allow state prosecutors to bring charges against a federal agent if the officer engages in a reckless assault or other conduct outside of what the job requires. These prosecutions are rare because most federal agents adhere to the law and their training, but given the unprecedented lawlessness and abuse of power by President Trump’s immigration agents, this is a necessary response.
The legislation will give the Illinois Attorney General the power to investigate these crimes alongside state and local law enforcement and provide resources for investigators, prosecutors, and other staff needed for these complex prosecutions.
Give Chicagoans Detained by ICE Access to Immigration Counsel
More than two-thirds of immigrants facing deportation lack access to an attorney, a basic American right. As we have seen widespread dragnets that sweep up people without judicial warrants or even demonstrated threat to public safety, legal representation is critically important to ensure people can defend themselves from false or inappropriate charges from the federal government. When individuals have access to an immigration attorney, their likelihood of deportation is cut in half.
Mac supports Illinois recruiting more attorneys from the nonprofit sector, public defenders, and elsewhere to ensure that everyone in Illinois facing deportation has access to legal representation.
Block Uninvited National Guard Deployments into Illinois
States have the right to determine when and how the National Guard is deployed. President Trump has ignored this and put the hardworking men and women of the national guard into his political project against the will of families and businesses alike. Multiple states are introducing laws to block the deployment of other states’ National Guard units from entering their state without the governor’s approval. Illinois needs this protection so Trump can’t do this again.
At least six Republican-led states, Texas, Oklahoma, Idaho, Kansas, South Carolina, and North Dakota, all have these statutes in place. Washington state passed a similar law last year, and more states are introducing legislation in the wake of Trump’s threats of militarization.
Stop ICE and CBP Officers From Hiding Behind Masks
Right now, federal officers are emboldened to break the law and harass and assault Americans by hiding behind masks. This un-American practice must end.
Mac supports federal and state efforts to require federal immigration officers to stop wearing masks, to maintain body cameras that keep a record of interactions with residents, and to end enforcement actions near sensitive locations, like churches, schools, and courthouses. ICE and CBP must also follow use-of-force standards, such as placing an officer involved in a shooting on leave until an investigation is completed.
Fund a Community Defense Task Force
Chicago neighbors, organized through community defense and grassroots organizations, are one of the most powerful checks on ICE abuses. Illinois should provide more resources for Know Your Rights trainings, community support organizations, and other grassroots efforts leading the charge in coalition building and rapid response networks to keep our communities safe.
Establish an Interstate Defense Compact
Similar to the Reproductive Freedom Alliance that was created in response to the Trump court’s attack on a woman’s reproductive freedom, Illinois should lead a group of governors and other state leaders to establish an interstate compact to strategically coordinate against federal overreach on immigration.
Under the compact, states will coordinate accountability efforts, such as the Illinois Accountability Project, to track and document unlawful federal conduct across state lines, identify patterns of misconduct, and monitor agents. Member states will share information and evidence as well as participate in joint litigation to block unlawful actions, further strengthening and protecting our rights under the 10th Amendment.