November 17, 2007 (WAUKEGAN, Ill.) - Sailboats bob on Lake Michigan just a few blocks from the sales center for a new downtown condominium development -- a welcome addition in a town that has struggled with the loss of thousands of industrial jobs.
It also fits with city officials' vision of remaking this blue-collar suburb 30 miles north of Chicago by promoting its historic downtown and lakeside location as a destination for jobs, housing, shopping and entertainment.
But other redevelopment already has taken root: Mexican groceries, a currency exchange advertising "Se habla Espanol" and other businesses that cater to the city's burgeoning immigrant population. Hispanics now represent more than half of the city's 88,500 residents, according to recent Census figures, and a third of its residents are foreign-born.
Despite their numbers, the newcomers feel anything but welcome.
Coexistence has been uneasy at best ever since Waukegan officials applied last summer for a program that would train two local police officers to enforce federal immigration law. The proposal prompted a massive downtown demonstration by immigrant rights' groups and a boycott of businesses that didn't post signs opposing the application.
City leaders say the measure would speed up the deportation of people who commit violent crimes or break drug laws, and make Waukegan a safer place for everyone.
"It's a tool we can use to rid ourselves of serious criminals, and we have to use every avenue that we can," said Police Chief William Biang.
But some Latinos say the measure will just deepen the community's distrust of the police, and scare away those who could be the backbone of a vibrant, diverse Waukegan.
"You have thousands of people who are hardworking, who came and invested in this city. They're being chased away," said Yolanda Torrez, an attorney born in Waukegan whose practice handles criminal, traffic and real estate cases.
She said Latino residents are understandably skeptical. A decade ago, the city settled a lawsuit with the Justice Department over a housing code that federal authorities alleged was aimed at Hispanic families. And, she said, Hispanic residents now feel targeted by a city ordinance that allows vehicles to be seized and a $500 penalty imposed if the driver lacks insurance or a license.
The federal immigration enforcement program was created in 1996, but the first agency didn't join until 2001. Now, about 28 municipal, county or state law enforcement agencies currently take part, and the Department of Homeland Security has applications pending from approximately 75 more.
In the Charlotte, N.C., area, Mecklenburg County Sheriff Jim Pendergraph said he joined the program out of frustration: "I knew there were many illegal immigrants, some with felony convictions, who were posting bond and walking out of my jail daily," he wrote this year in a trade magazine aimed at sheriffs.
Attorney Jennifer Nagda of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, which opposes Waukegan's application, sees the increased interest in the program and other immigration-related measures passed by local governments as a symptom of "frustration over the federal government's inaction or inability to act on immigration."
"You have this patchwork of different ordinances popping up regarding immigrant communities, and this is precisely why immigration is something that needs to be dealt with at the federal level," said Nagda. "You can't have different measures each time you pass over a city or county line."
Under the immigration enforcement program, local officers receive training and supervision from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, then have access to a federal database with photos, fingerprints and information on past arrests and convictions. They also can check the validity of documents and start deportation proceedings.
Critics say procedures already are in place for deporting criminals through ICE and giving that power to local officials could lead to racial profiling and increase distrust of police among illegal and legal immigrants, as well as U.S. citizens of Latino descent.
They envision scenarios where an undocumented immigrant refuses to report her husband's physical abuse for fear of getting deported herself, or witnesses to crimes reluctant to talk to police for fear they would ask questions about their immigration status.
While Waukegan has not yet been accepted into the federal program, some say the fallout of the city's decision is already being felt.
Torrez said she's heard of Latinos who have broken their leases and moved away, and of stores that cater to immigrants that have seen sales slip.
"I think sometimes they're nostalgic for a Waukegan that never existed," Torrez said of the city's leaders.
Waukegan Mayor Richard Hyde and Biang have pledged that the city's new authority won't be used for immigration raids, and that illegal immigrants stopped by police for minor infractions, such as not wearing a seat belt or a broken tail light, won't get caught up in the measure.
Instead, they say they want to ensure that immigrants convicted of felonies -- such as rape, murder, drug and gang crimes -- are on the deportation path as soon as possible.
"I don't think even people here illegally, just getting by, doing their jobs, are going to object to that," Biang said. "It's their kids who are going to be the victims of drug dealers and drive-by shootings, along with everybody else's children."
On the Net:
Homeland Security: http://www.dhs.gov/index.shtm
City of Waukegan: www.waukeganweb.net
Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office: www.charmeck.org/Departments/MCSO/
Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund: www.maldef.org/
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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