It's a truism that people who live through extraordinary historical moments generally fail either to recognize or understand them at the time. Nonetheless, there was something truly eye-popping about the multiple headlines last Thursday and Friday warning of an imminent invasion of Chicago, replete with "flash bang grenades," "early morning raids" and calls for schools to shut down in-person learning.
The invader? The U.S. government. Unbelievable.
We primarily blame President Donald Trump for this deeply lamentable situation. His job as president is not to threaten a commando surprise that may be a bluff but to work cooperatively with state and local governments for the benefit of all Americans and to reach out for compromise even if he feels that others are his political enemies or are not reaching out to him. He is failing in that job. As we have said many times, though, we also are not fans of our local elected officials using extreme language and encouraging Chicagoans to take personal risks and repel the nation's own government exactly as one would a hostile, violent force, no different than an army from a foreign shore. They should be de-escalating as much as they can.
Immigration and its enforcement is the job of the federal government. If state and local officials feel it should be otherwise, they would need to promote and pass legislation to the contrary. Even if they find the federal government of the moment despicable, as indeed they do, it remains the duly elected government. As we said many times, Trump needed to be removed by the voters. Last time, they declined to do so and this issue was a big part of why. Elections have consequences.
Thus as both our governor and mayor well know, there is nothing they can do to stop the feds from lawful immigration enforcement action, short of their coming out in favor of anarchy, tempting as it may be. But what they can do is fight for compassion and human dignity, and argue against intimidation, especially of children. And we can join them in that.
Take, for example, the matter of masks. Federal officials engaged in enforcement actions should not be masked. Face coverings are the costumes of juntas and raiders and terrorists; they have no place on the visages of those enforcing the law. We reject the argument that ICE agents, or any other federal enforcement officer of any kind, need anonymity to avoid being targeted thereafter. Our police officers face the same risks every day and they have the courage to show their faces on the street and in their communities, where neighbors know what they do. They are proud of their work for the city, despite being attacked by local officials on a regular basis, and they understand it requires them to look people in the eye.
What about that do the immigration enforcement officials and their civilian overlords not understand?