“We’re Better Than This” – Leading Voices Speak Out Against Dangerous Continued Escalation in Chicago and Beyond

Access online version of this press release HERE

Washington, DC — As the Trump administration prepares to deploy Texas National Guard troops in Chicago against the wishes of the local community and elected officials, Stephen Miller has asserted that President Trump’s power is limitless. Miller’s statements come on the heels of Trump posting online this morning that Illinois Governor Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Johnson should be in jail. And as ICE continues to operate with a dangerous combination of unaccountable cruelty – as the South Side Chicago apartment raid makes clear – key voices are speaking out in condemnation and calling for a better way for our nation.

According to Vanessa Cárdenas, Executive Director of America’s Voice:

“The unprecedented action to deploy troops in states and cities is a frontal attack on our democracy and the rights of every American– no matter whether they are Republican or Democrat. These reckless actions are being undertaken by a leader untethered from reality who is weaponizing immigration to divide us into a mass deportation crusade that is sweeping up children, friends and neighbors including U.S. citizens and veterans that have served to defend our nation. None of this is business as usual or normal politics. We’re in a tinderbox moment but also a moment for reflection: we’re better than this as a nation and need to join together to denounce what’s being implemented in our name, and before our very eyes.”

Among the voices speaking out and calling for a different vision for our civilian/military relations, our balance of powers, and how we engage on immigration

Military Voices

• Maj. Gen. Randy Manner (Ret.) noted the deployment of National Guard was “unneeded and also very dangerous. It’s setting a new precedent. This is something where, when I was the acting vice chief of the National Guard Bureau, we absolutely already put into place the ability of having quick reaction forces in every state, depending on the size, but also the state would depend on the size of these quick reaction forces. They were at the time, of course, targeting the ability to respond to emergencies in the state such as floods, hurricanes, forest fires, earthquakes, and so on to be able to save lives. The difference here is that it’s focused on — quote, unquote — “public order.” That’s very disturbing.”

• Major General William Enyart noted, “There’s a cost to the Department of Defense and to FEMA. Every dollar spent on misguided use is a dollar that can’t be spent on training and equipping these soldiers. That can’t be spent on their real mission. A dollar that isn’t there for disaster response when the next hurricane hits New Orleans or the next tornado levels St. Louis.”

Faith & Community Leaders, and Former Elected Officials

• Pope Leo urged “a delegation of bishops and social workers from the U.S. – Mexico border at the Vatican on Wednesday to “speak strongly” on behalf of migrants and refugees affected by Trump’s deportation drive.”

• Rev. David Black, a Presbyterian minister pepper sprayed by ICE outside a Chicago detention facility, noted of his message to ICE personnel in an interview with Religion News: “I invited them to repentance,” Black, a minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), said in an interview. “I basically offered an altar call. I invited them to come and receive that salvation, and be part of the kingdom that is coming.” But when Black began to lower his arms a few seconds later, the agents responded to his spiritual plea by firing pepper balls, or chemical agents that cause eye irritation and respiratory distress, video footage shows. One struck Black in the head, exploding into a puff of white pepper smoke and forcing him to his knees. Fellow demonstrators rushed to his aid, and as the pastor rubbed his face in pain, the agents continued to fire. “We could hear them laughing,” Black said.” (Also read Newsweek, “Chicago Pastor Sues Trump Admin After Allegedly Being Shot by ICE Agents).

• Rev. Michael Pfleger noted, “People of faith, and people of determination, and people that believe in truth and believe in justice and believe in democracy, we’re coming to let him know, not here. You’ve met your match, Trump.”

• Dr. Rami Nashashibi noted, “We know what it means to turn some of the most violent-ridden blocks into some of the most thriving blocks in the city of Chicago, and it does not mean military troops.”

• Former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman noted, “This is infuriating. It is stoking resentment and fanning the flames.”

• The Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago and the Civic Federation released a joint statement addressing the deployment of National Guard troops to Chicago stating, “National Guard troops on our streets… have the potential to sow fear and chaos, threatening our businesses’ bottom lines and our reputation. We believe there’s a critical role for federal partnership and support to enhance public safety in Chicago. But to be helpful, it is vital that it be coordinated, responsive to our city’s particular needs, and integrated with our ongoing efforts on the ground. It also needs to be conducted in a way that is respectful of the civil liberties and constitutional rights of all who live here.”