Chicago has proudly operated as a sanctuary city since 1985. But what does that mean, exactly? Below, get answers on some of your most common questions about the Welcoming City Ordinance.
What does the Welcoming City Ordinance do?
The Welcoming City Ordinance does three things:
- it prohibits any City employee from asking about or assisting in the investigation of the immigration status of anyone, unless ordered to do so by court or federal law
- it prevents city services from being denied to anyone on the basis of their immigration status.
- it prohibits the Chicago Police Department from participating in or cooperating with federal civil immigration enforcement, unless they are required to do so by a court or federal law.
What does the Welcoming City Ordinance not do?
It does not require the city to take in immigrants from other states, to encourage immigrants to move to Chicago, or to fund any services for immigrants in our communities.
It also doesn’t prevent immigrants from being arrested for committing crimes. If an undocumented person breaks the law, they are subject to the same criminal justice process as anyone else would be.
Why does the Welcoming City Ordinance matter?
Studies show that when undocumented immigrants believe that they will risk detention or deportation by interacting with the police, they are less likely to report crimes like domestic violence, shootings, or armed robberies. They’re also less likely to take advantage of services—like accessing healthcare or enrolling their kids in school—that make not only their family, but the entire community, healthier.
Imagine if you lived next door to someone who was undocumented, and your house was broken into. You wouldn’t want that neighbor to have to second-guess whether to call 911, just like you wouldn’t want them to second-guess calling an ambulance if something bad happened to them.
Separating local law enforcement from immigration enforcement makes it more likely for people of all immigration status to participate fully in society, including reporting crimes if and when they happen—and thus makes our communities much safer.
Also: immigration enforcement is beyond the scope of our local police departments! That’s the job of the federal government. Our police department doesn’t have the capacity to help with their work in addition to investigating crime in our own cities.
Does being a welcoming city mean the same thing as being a sanctuary city?
Yes! Different cities call it different things, and some of their policies and protocols differ, but they all mean essentially the same thing: the city’s choice to limit or prohibit local law enforcement agencies from being involved with federal immigration enforcement.
Do sanctuary cities lead to an increase in crime?
No. Studies show no relationship between sanctuary city policies and increased crime rates. In fact, the opposite is likely true: studies also show a documented decrease in crime in cities and states that prioritize welcoming instead of targeting immigrants.
Is it illegal to be a sanctuary city? Can the federal government withhold funding to sanctuary cities?
Nope! Sanctuary cities have a constitutional right to decline to involve themselves in enforcing federal immigration law.
The federal government also cannot withhold funds to sanctuary cities based solely on their status as sanctuary cities. While the government can attach conditions to federal funding, there are clear parameters around that:
- The conditions must be clearly expressed in law;
- The conditions must be related to the funding in question;
- The conditions must not be coercive; and
- The conditions must not be in violation of any other constitutional provision.
Threatening to withhold funding to sanctuary cities does not meet those parameters. Back in 2017, the Trump administration threatened to withhold millions of dollars in federal funding if we did not repeal the Welcoming City Ordinance. Chicago took the administration to court to defend its status as a sanctuary city and won—a decision that was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2020.
What happens if a City employee violates the Welcoming City Ordinance?
If you think you may have witnessed or experienced a violation of the Welcoming City Ordinance by a Chicago Police Department officer or employee, file a complaint with the Civilian Office of Police Accountability*.
If you think you may have witnessed or experienced a violation of the Welcoming City Ordinance by a non-Chicago Police Department employee, you can report it to the Office of the Inspector General, who will open an investigation.
On July 1st, the Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights held a hearing on CPD’s involvement in the mass detention incident on June 4th. During that hearing, it became clear that there is a lack of clarity on whether COPA is responsible for investigating CPD violations of the Welcoming City Ordinance. We are following up to demand clarity on who is responsible for carrying out these investigations; in the meantime, you should still submit a complaint to COPA. If they decline to investigate, the OIG’s office will do so.