OFFICE OF THE MAYOR
CITY OF CHICAGO
BRANDON JOHNSON
MAYOR
EXECUTI VE ORDER NO. 2023-16 EXECUTIVE ORDER ON IMMIGRANT. MIGRANT. AND REFUGEE RIGHTS
WHEREAS, throughout Chicago's history, immigrants from across the world have built and strengthened the social, economic, and cultural fabric of the City of Chicago (the "City"); and
WHEREAS, a Black Haitian immigrant, Jean Baptiste DuSable, is recognized as the founder of our City; and
WHEREAS, the foundation of our City today was built by the vibrant and important history and struggles of the indigenous people and Native Americans who lived and thrived on this land for many years before settlers first came to the region; and
WHEREAS, the City of Chicago is located on the traditional homelands of the Anishinaabe, or the Council of the Three Fires: the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi Nations; and
WHEREAS, Chicago also has a history as a refuge to many different peoples, including those who came here to escape enslavement, oppression, and climate change; and
WHEREAS, Chicago became one of the first sanctuary cities in the country on July 18, 1982, when Wellington Avenue Church congregation voted to become just the second church in the U.S. to provide a safe haven for Central Americans fleeing political oppression and violence; and
WHEREAS, Mayor Harold Washington signed an Executive Order on March 7, 1985, halting City agencies' cooperation with federal immigration authorities; and
WHEREAS, the ongoing crisis of newly arriving asylum seekers and migrants into the City of Chicago has illuminated the immense challenges that the City must face and overcome in order to provide support and services to our new arrivals; and
WHEREAS, hundreds of mutual aid volunteers across the City have worked tirelessly to meet the moment by organizing and providing food, donations, beds, supplies, and interpretation services; and
WHEREAS, to meet the needs of newly arrived community members, it is necessary to coordinate the City's existing resources through an executive department within the Mayor's office; and
WHEREAS, while our federal immigration system needs to adapt humanely to the current global challenges driving immigration, Chicago will continue to provide a safe haven and home for new arrivals; and
WHEREAS, in supporting new arrivals, the City of Chicago must reckon with our existing systemic inequities that many communities already face related to housing, safety, and other supportive services, particularly Black and undocumented communities; and
WHEREAS, the Black immigrant population in Chicago has been growing steadily in the last few years, reflecting a nationwide trend, with the foreign-born African community growing by more than 50 percent between 2005 and 2017.
WHEREAS, there are few community and advocacy groups dedicated to the specific needs of Chicago's Black immigrant population including language access resources for immigrants arriving from non english-speaking countries; or that even with high levels of education, Black immigrants tend to earn low wages compared to other similarly trained immigrant or native workers; and
WHEREAS, addressing these longstanding issues will require meaningful and proactive community engagement and support; and
WHEREAS, the Chicago Office of New Americans must provide significant direction, services, and resources for both newly arrived community members along with existing immigrant communities including, but not limited to, DACA recipients, undocumented students, and people applying for citizenship; and
WHEREAS, the role of the Office of New Americans can be elevated and expanded further to allow it to better serve communities across Chicago; and
WHEREAS, the City of Chicago finds it necessary and appropriate to create a position within the executive department to lead the City of Chicago's efforts to support newly arrived community members, immigrants, refugees, migrants, undocumented community members, DACA recipients, people applying for citizenship, and others; now, therefore,
I, Brandon Johnson, Mayor of the City of Chicago, do hereby order as follows:
Section 1. The above "WHEREAS" clauses are incorporated into and made an integral part of this Order.
Section 2. A Deputy Mayor for Immigrant, Migrant, and Refugee Rights is established in the Mayor's Office and this Deputy Mayor will have such staff as are necessary for effective functioning of this Office.
Section 3. The Deputy Mayor for Immigrant, Migrant, and Refugee Rights is responsible for coordination and communication between all applicable City departments and officials related to the City's efforts to support newly arrived community members, immigrants, refugees, migrants, undocumented community members, DACA recipients, and people applying for citizenship. All City Department Heads are directed to undertake whatever efforts are feasible pursuant to their powers and duties, and to direct their employees accordingly, to work with the Deputy Mayor for Immigrant, Migrant, and Refugee Rights consistent with the purposes of this Order.
Section 4. The Deputy Mayor will provide recommendations to me, with urgency, with proposals for inclusion in the City's Fiscal Year 2024 budget on programs, policies, and expenditures to support newly arrived community members along with existing immigrant, migrant, and refugee community members.
Section 5. This Order will take effect upon its execution and filing with the City Clerk.
Chicago City Clerk -Council Bit1.
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