Mayor Johnson signs ‘Protecting Chicago Initiative’ in attempt to safeguard city from federal agents, troops

Mayor Brandon Johnson signed an executive order Saturday afternoon aimed at holding federal law enforcement in the city to municipal rules on policing while also keeping tabs on new deployments and informing citizens of their rights.

The order, the “Protecting Chicago Initiative,” comes after the Chicago Sun-Times first reported that Naval Station Great Lakes near North Chicago was being considered as a possible staging ground for an immigration blitz that could bring more than 200 federal agents to the area from Tuesday to Sept. 30.

Johnson said information received by the city set Friday as the arrival date. National Guard troops could also be sent to support the effort.

According to the initiative, the Chicago Police Department would remain a city agency and urges federal law enforcement to abide by city laws on policing. Johnson threatened legal action if they didn’t. This would include barring officers from concealing their identities with masks, making them use active body cameras during engagements, and requiring them to wear identifying information such as badges and uniforms, and also stating CPD will not work with federal or military units in the city.

“I do not take this executive action lightly,” Johnson said. “I would’ve preferred to work more collaboratively to pass legislation … but unfortunately we do not have the luxury of time. We have received credible reports that we have days, not weeks, before our city sees some kind of militarized activity by the federal government.”

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• This report was published in partnership with the Chicago Sun-Times. For more, visit chicago.suntimes.com.