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Thousands of migrant families have arrived in Chicago over the
past year. City officials have placed many in police stations,
YMCAs and Daley College.
Recently, Johnson said the city is looking for other towns to
help with housing migrants.
"We've had conversations with mayors across not just Cook County
but the surrounding counties, and we have had tremendous
feedback," Johnson said Monday. "We see some real support on the
horizon."
Keith Pekau, the Republican mayor of Orland Park, a Cook County
suburb of more than 57,000 people, told The Center Square that
he is not on board with the idea.
"None of us have the resources for this. We do not have health
departments. We do not have that kind of stuff," Pekau said.
"[Gov. J.B. Pritzker] has called us a sanctuary state, right?
Here's the deal, at the state level, the state has been ripping
all the municipalities off by the Local Government Distributive
Fund since prior to Pritzker."
Many Illinois suburbs do not have the funds to take care of the
migrants, he said.
"Municipalities have been getting screwed by the state of
Illinois. Our residents are helping them [the state] pay for
things off their own backs that they don't even know about,"
Pekau said. "Keep in mind how Pritzker attacks all the
municipalities for property taxes and everything else but guess
what? You are taking away money from them first."
Pekau also criticized Johnson and President Joe Biden for what
he said was a violation of U.S. law.
"I think, at a high level, it is very simple. Joe Biden is
putting his nose in the air to our laws and is violating our
laws at the border," Pekau said. "Brandon Johnson and his city
have supported this, and he and the Cook County Board want them
to be a sanctuary city, and that violates our laws as well."
Just this month, Johnson said that Chicago would remain open for
those that wish to come there, reaffirming the city's stance as
a "sanctuary city" or a jurisdiction with lax local enforcement
of federal immigration laws.
"Here's what I am committed to doing, honoring the law of being
a sanctuary city and building systems of care that provide a
pathway with dignity for individuals who are seeking refuge here
in the city of Chicago," Johnson said.
Around 12,000 migrants have arrived in Chicago from the southern
U.S. border in the past year. So far, city and state taxpayers
have set aside $94 million for migrant housing. The state budget
has $550 million in taxpayer subsidies for health care of
migrants over the age of 65.
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