The Will County Board will consider next week a resolution asking the state and federal government to adopt polices to prohibit immigration enforcement in courthouses, schools and other sensitive community spaces and ensure that residents, regardless of immigration status, can live without fear of harassment and racial profiling.
The proposed resolution was passed Tuesday at the board’s Legislative Committee meeting with four Democratic committee members supporting it. The measure moves to the County Board for a vote on Oct. 16.
Republicans serving on the committee said it amounted to campaign or political speech outside of the board’s purview.
Legislative Committee Chair Destinee Ortiz, a Democrat from Romeoville, said she brought forward the resolution because residents deserve to live and work without fear.
“At its core, this resolution is about affirming something very simple — that every person in Will County deserves to feel safe in their own community,” Ortiz said.
She said there have been reports of aggressive immigration enforcement actions in recent months that cause fear among undocumented and U.S. residents alike.
“This is not a campaign speech or political or whatever you want to call it,” she said. “It’s about principle. It is about the Constitution. … Every human being on U.S. soil regardless of how they got here is guaranteed basic constitutional protections against government abuse.”
Ortiz said when people are profiled because of the color of their skin or the language they speak, they become afraid. When residents live in fear, they don’t call police, go to court, send their children to school or seek medical treatment, and they stop trusting government institutions, Ortiz said.
The resolution was amended along a party-line vote to add language that asks federal and state governments to adopt policies that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement need to identify themselves and stop wearing masks, unless medically necessary, to improve transparency and build trust. Four Democrats on the committee supported the amendment while three Republicans opposed it.
The resolution also asks for increased transparency and accountability in immigration enforcement actions to ensure that no one is detained or deported solely due to racial or ethnic profiling.
In a social media post, Ortiz encouraged Will County residents to write to the board in support of the resolution.
Legislative Committee Republicans voted against the proposed resolution.
“This has nothing to do with our county responsibilities, and I absolutely do not support this,” said board member Julie Berkowicz, a Naperville Republican.
She said some of the statements within the resolution, such as 70% of individuals in ICE detention have no criminal records, is not verified.
“For us to put our names on something that is not truthful or valid is reckless,” Berkowicz said.
She said the federal government is “finally stepping up to enforce our legal immigration laws.”
Dan Butler, a Frankfort Republican, said he believed the resolution included inflammatory and misleading statements.
“There are hardened criminals,” Butler said. “The federal government is within its right to come in and look for those people. Most of these people are criminals. They are getting out of here. There is nothing that is going to stop that. I feel bad for any immigrants that came over illegally who are good people, but this is a campaign speech. This is not a credible resolution.”
The County Board rejected a resolution in July 2024 that declared the county a nonsanctuary county, after several residents said it was an anti-immigrant resolution that runs counter to the county’s welcoming values. At the time, 11 Democrats voted against the resolution and eight Republicans voted in favor of it.
The committee meeting came the same day as members of the Texas National Guard stationed soldiers in Elwood.
County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant released a statement Tuesday saying the county was made aware by state and Elwood officials of the presence of Texas National Guard soldiers at the Army Reserve training facility in Elwood.
“We have received no information or coordination from the federal government about this deployment, including the scale of operations or the length of time they will be stationed at this facility,” Bertino-Tarrant said. “The arrival of the National Guard by the Trump Administration is an aggressive overreach. Our federal government moving armed troops into our community should be alarming to everyone.”
She said she will coordinate with local leaders to protect the rights of the residents and ensure safety.
Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
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