From Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights

​

Trump has announced that he will deploy federal troops to Chicago and across Illinois. This attack on all of our communities — Black, immigrant, city and suburban alike -- is meant to instill fear and sow division. Our job is to make sure we respond with unity, organization, and action.

 

At ICIRR, we are:

• Expanding our rapid response teams and staffing up our Family Support Hotline (855-435-7693) as call volume increases.

• Preparing our communities by learning from what residents in Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles have already faced -- uniformed troops, traffic checkpoints, racial profiling, and violations of due process rights.

• Canvassing neighborhoods door to door with know your rights and community defense information.

​

In Illinois, we're not starting from scratch. Together, we’ve already shut down ICE detention in our state, expanded health care, protected workers’ rights, and enshrined pretrial fairness. We know the power of organizing block by block, neighborhood by neighborhood — and we know that educated, connected communities are safer communities.

 

We're also not alone. Labor partners like SEIU, CTU, and the Chicago Federation of Labor stand with us. The Governor, the Mayor, and elected allies are pushing back against Trump’s overreach. For decades, immigrants, workers, and Black and Brown communities have kept each other safe when the government failed us. That remains true today.

 

Here’s how you can be part of this collective defense right now:

• Save the Family Support Hotline in your phone: 855-435-7693. Share it with your neighbors.

• Stay connected with us on social media for Know Your Rights resources, rapid response updates, and training opportunities.

• Stand with us as we build the mass movement needed to protect our families and our future.

• Donate to support community. We don't have the power of the federal government, but we have the power of the people.

​

This is an unprecedented moment — but it's also a moment of possibility. We will not be divided, and we will not be silenced by fear. 

 

In solidarity,
 

Lawrence Benito

Executive Director
Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights