Bloomington leaders, residents urge denouncement of hate flyers and defend police community engagement unit

Dozens of residents told the Bloomington City Council on Aug. 25 that the city must publicly denounce flyers and symbols they said promote hate and confirm support for the Bloomington Police DepartmentCommunity Engagement Unit. Mike Matika, representing Not In Our Town, said a flyer that circulated last week used an image he described as offensive and urged residents and leaders to sign the Not In Our Town pledge. "This is not the spirit of our community," Matika said. "We come together as a community to stop hate, address bullying, and build a safe and diverse community."

The concern intensified after city leaders and local media reported the Bloomington Police Department was asked not to participate in a recent immigration-education event at Wesley United Methodist Church. Jill Blair, a Bloomington resident, said in public comment that the Illinois Trust Act (2017) generally prohibits local participation in federal immigration enforcement and that local policing presence helps reassure immigrant residents who often underreport crimes. "If we want Bloomington to continue to be a safe community, we need every resident to understand that reporting a crime will not get them into trouble," Blair told the council.

Supporters of the departmentincluding faith leaders, nonprofit volunteers and former event hostsurged the council to preserve the unit's outreach work. Sherry Stroll, a volunteer with McLean County Be Smart, thanked Chief Symington, Lieutenant Arnold and Sergeant Kyle Nowers for creating and sustaining the Community Engagement Unit and said the unitwhich she said runs hundreds of events each yearhas improved trust with vulnerable residents. "I firmly believe it has led to a safer Bloomington," Stroll said. Rabbi Rebecca Duvall of Moses Montefiore Congregation said she has contacted Sergeant Nowers directly on safety questions and urged the council to "stand shoulder to shoulder across faiths, cultures, and neighborhoods."

Several speakers described past successful events that included police participation and questioned why the department was later discouraged from presenting at the church program. Stephen Butte, who has supported the community engagement unitwhich he said was created in April 2022told the council Sergeant Nowers has led presentations about immigration law and deescalation and that curtailing such appearances could harm public safety and crime reporting. "Sergeant Nowers is very well qualified to give the kind of presentation we had asked him to give," Butte said.

City Manager Jurgens told the council the Community Engagement Unit remains operational and "isn't going away anytime soon," and said police are developing clearer protocols after concern that a flyer implied the department would advise people how to evade federal immigration enforcement. Jurgens said the city policy is that Bloomington does not participate in immigration enforcement and that staff are tightening processes so city-sponsored outreach is consistent with that policy. "We want to make sure that our policies are tightened up a little bit more," Jurgens said.

Mayor Dan Brady said he condemns the hateful flyer and urged unity but also emphasized the difficulty of some leadership decisions. Several council members publicly signed the Not In Our Town pledge during the meeting and urged the mayor and colleagues to do the same. No formal ordinance or policy change was voted on during the meeting; council discussion produced direction for staff to clarify protocols for city-affiliated outreach and to continue supporting community policing efforts.

Why it matters: Speakers said curbing police participation in community-facing education could reduce immigrant residents' willingness to report crimes and reverse trust built by years of outreach. City staff said they will clarify rules for city-branded events so the public understands when the city is providing legal information and when community groups are responsible for program content.

What happened next: Council members heard more than a dozen public commenters on the topic and individually expressed support for both a public denouncement of hate and for continued police outreach. City staff committed to developing clearer event protocols and to maintaining the Community Engagement Unit's outreach while ensuring compliance with city policy and state law.