At the same time some Will County Board members want to eliminate proclamations from their monthly meetings because they can be divisive and political, a board committee passed, along party lines, a resolution declaring Will County a non-sanctuary county, which some board members said was both divisive and political.
The Will County Executive Committee, which includes about half of the Will County Board, recommended 7-5 Thursday to advance a resolution to declare the county a non-sanctuary county for asylum seekers and illegal immigration.
The seven Republicans voting in favor of the resolution said it makes a statement to Springfield and joins with other communities in Illinois that are concerned with a lack of a federal or state plan for providing services to asylum seekers.
The five Democrats who voted against the resolution said immigration is a national issue that the county board cannot control.
The resolution will go before the equally-divided Will County Board for consideration.
“This is pointless,” said Aurora Democrat Meta Mueller. “I’m so tired of people’s political stunts in meetings. I’m going to ask folks to please keep their political leanings off of our agendas from now on.”
Jacqueline Traynere, the Democratic Leader from Bolingbrook, said immigration is a national issue and not something the county board can fix. Buses carrying migrants that have passed through the county were sent to Chicago, she said. If residents are upset about the U.S. immigration policy, they should contact their elected officials in the U.S. House or Senate, Traynere said.
On the other hand, several Republicans said their constituents are concerned about illegal immigration.
“I understand some people may find this to be political, but it is a serious issue,” said Republican Dan Butler of Frankfort, who brought forth the resolution.
Sanctuary cities overwhelm social service agencies and strain community resources, Butler said.
“Eventually, the system will break,” he said.
Julie Berkowicz, a Republican from Naperville, said immigration is both a local and national issue.
“It has a direct impact on citizens and legal residents, people who have come to this country legally,” Berkowicz said. “Everything we give away to people who have broken the law is paid by the taxpayer.”
Katie Deane-Schlottman, a Joliet Republican, said the resolution says the county government is prioritizing Will County citizens.
Sherry Williams, a Crest Hill Democrat, said Will County law enforcement hasn’t reported problems with illegal immigration.
“I only wish that we had this much interest in taking care of some of the people we have in Will County,” Williams said. “If we want to expend our energies on something, expend it on stuff we can do something about.”
Frankie Pretzel, a Republican from New Lenox, said the resolution cost the county nothing, but sends a clear message. There would be more people without access to water or shelter if illegal immigrants were allowed to stay in the county, he said.
Mueller said the resolution does not move the county forward.
“Overall, it costs our community a lot of integrity,” she said.
County Board Chair Judy Ogalla, a Republican from Monee, said the resolution is important so the board speaks as an elected body to other government agencies.
The recommendation to pass the resolution came on the heels of the committee recommending to eliminate honorary proclamations from the board’s monthly meetings.
Both Republicans and Democrats on the Executive Committee were in agreement proclamations should be removed. The committee voted 11-1 to recommend eliminating them, with Ogalla dissenting.
Typically, board proclamations generate no discussion at meetings, but are a chance for board members to recognize members of the community or a holiday, or to bring awareness to a cause.
This year, the board issued proclamations recognizing Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, National Nurses Week, National Child Abuse Prevention Month, Autism Acceptance Month and Black History Month, among others. Usually, they create positive photo opportunities between board members and the community they are celebrating.
At the June meeting, however, members of Pride organizations stood at a lectern as the proclamation recognizing Pride Month was being read aloud, and two Republican board members questioned why it was on the agenda.
In June 2023, the board removed the Pride Month proclamation from the agenda as well as another that recognized Moms for America. The Moms for America group is listed among the Southern Poverty Law Center’s hate and antigovernment groups in Illinois, but supporters say they promote families.
“Proclamations seem to be a big problem, so why don’t we just eliminate them,” Steve Balich, the board’s Republican Leader from Homer Glen, said at a recent meeting. “I think it’s a total waste of time and causes more dissension between the Republicans and the Democrats.”
“I think as a board, we have shown that we cannot all behave ourselves,” Mueller said last week. “I think it’s very humiliating and I don’t love it when people from communities that are marginalized come to this meeting and see folks behaving so poorly and so rudely.”
Removing proclamations from county board meetings must pass the entire board to go into effect.
“I think that it’s a shame that we as a county board cannot get together and have proclamations to represent our constituents,” Ogalla said after Thursday’s committee vote.
“Our constituents are Republican. They are Democrat. They’re Green Party. They’re Libertarian. They don’t vote. They hate government,” she said. “There are issues that we have done proclamations for that one of us, all of us, some of us might feel proud of, and I think it’s a shame that we can’t come together.”
Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter.