Durbin Praises Religious Leaders For Condemning ICE Actions In Chicago, Asks Americans To Join

Durbin Praises Religious Leaders For Condemning ICE Actions In Chicago, Asks Americans To Join

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, praised religious leaders for condemning the actions of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for unlawful raids, encouraging Americans to join in condemning the Trump Administration's anti-immigrant agenda.

Durbin began by praising and entering a homily by the Archbishop of Washington and a letter to the editor from Jewish rabbis in Illinois condemning the actions of ICE and DHS into the Congressional Record, saying: "The Cardinal from the District of Columbia and the Jewish rabbis know-and we all know-that this is a reign of terror from this Administration aimed not to make America safer, but to make sure that people who weren't born here leave."

Durbin then shared insights from a visit to suburban Elgin, Illinois, one of the first targets of the Trump Administration's raids, saying: "The Mayor of Elgin, Dave Kaptain, is a true bipartisan man. It's no surprise he's been mayor for almost twelve years. He's a good mayor and a good person, and we met in his office and talked about what is going on. Elgin was one of the first targets of President Trump and ICE. They sent in agents in the early morning hours… they broke down a door to a home… raided it… removing the family… and accused one of the occupants of being undocumented. There was no allegation made that these people were 'dangerous criminals,' nor was there any question that they were the 'worst of the worst,' using Donald Trump's words."

Durbin continued: "Do you remember how many times [President Trump] gave speeches at rallies, talking about these people that are now being disappeared by ICE? Remember how he referred to them as 'rapists,' 'murderers,' 'terrorists,' 'sexual predators,' 'criminally insane'? It turns out that of all the people they've arrested and detained and disappeared … Seventy percent have no criminal record whatsoever."

Durbin then reflected on a visit to Little Village in Chicago, saying: "What's going on now is a reign of terror. I went to a section of Chicago known as Little Village, which is primarily Mexican American. It's a great community with miles and miles of shops and stores and restaurants. When I visited Friday, they were largely empty. One fellow at a grocery store told me that fifty percent of their customers have disappeared. Why? Because they're afraid. They're afraid to leave their homes to be arrested, to be detained, to disappear. Oftentimes, we're asked to try to find someone who has been detained and get little or no cooperation from the federal agencies. These are the tactics of dictators in faraway countries, not of American due process, but that's the reality of what we're facing."

Durbin then shared overwhelming support for immigrant communities from the Mayor of Elgin, saying: "I asked the Mayor of Elgin what he thought about the Hispanic population in his town. I was told 'Senator, twenty percent of people in my city of Elgin are Hispanic. Many of them are immigrants. They make for a great community. We just had a beautiful festival with ten thousand people showing up. It's been a tradition in Elgin for a long time, and one we're proud of.' He made a point of telling me that they are changing the ordinances in Elgin to make those who are protected by DACA eligible to apply to be firefighters and policemen...They have a long line of people who are interested. Immigrants willing to risk their lives to keep their community safe that, I think, is a great story of a great town, and I'm proud to represent them."

Durbin concluded with a call for all Americans to join in condemning the un-American, unlawful actions of the Trump Administration targeting immigrants, saying: "If you're going after serious criminals, the worst of the worst, the litany that's often given by President Trump at his rallies…. count me in. I will be part of that. But to terrorize people in their homes, to make them afraid to go to church, afraid to go to the market, afraid to go to a restaurant, that's not what this country is about. There's only one parallel in history that can I think of that has occurred in my lifetime, and that, of course, would be the internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II. It was a discriminatory policy in the midst of a war that took people from their homes and their businesses and held them in camps scattered around the west of the United States… Sadly, we're building up to another occurrence in the United States with the actions of ICE and [the] Department of Homeland Security when it comes to Hispanic Americans. Profiling is a part of the process and it is a disgrace. That's what we face in Chicago and that is the reality of what they're going [to] face in other states to come. It's time for not only the clergy to speak up but people who care to speak up who believe in human life and the value of it and believe that people need to be treated with respect."

Video of Durbin's remarks is available here.

Audio of Durbin's remarks is available here.

Footage of Durbin's remarks is available here for TV Stations.

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