A proposal designed to protect immigrants from threats by police and other city employees based on their race or immigration status is moving forward in the City Council.
The number of people seeking sanctuary in the Chicago area is growing significantly, according to a local agency that helps refugees resettle in the city.
“Right now, we are experiencing a really crazy surge in arrivals,” Lea Tienou told an audience of college students as well as immigrant and refugee service providers and advocates.
Tienou is associate director of refugee family adjustment and employment services at the Heartland Alliance. She spoke Monday afternoon at DePaul University’s Loop campus as part of a panel discussion about the global refugee crisis.
The Heartland Alliance typically sees about 20 refugees per month, Tienou explained. Just in the last month, however, 100 refugees came to the agency, and 90 more are expected to seek assistance from the Heartland Alliance in September.
“It’s been a really busy time, and this is throughout the country that we’re seeing a really large influx of arrivals,” she said.
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Reps. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL,4) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL,8) are scheduled to attend a Monday morning roundtable discussion in Chicago on “commonsense” immigration reform.
Undocumented Illinois college students upset by a recent veto from the governor are set to speak out Friday morning. The students plan to hold a press conference and rally in Chicago at the Plaza de Las Americas on Michigan Avenue.
U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL) and U.S. Rep. Bob Dold (R-IL,10) are among the elected officials scheduled to attend a Wednesday morning roundtable discussion in Chicago on “commonsense” immigration reform.