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Community groups press Prospect Heights for immigrant‑safety steps, translation and surveillance safeguards
Summary
Speakers from local immigrant‑serving organizations asked the council for better language accessibility, clearer policies limiting local assistance to federal immigration enforcement, submission of a December 2020 incident video to the state's attorney for review, and transparency about Block/ALPR surveillance use and safeguards.
Community advocates and service providers used the March 9 meeting to press Prospect Heights officials on immigrant safety, language access and surveillance transparency.
"Upholding the oath of office means protecting the safety, dignity and rights of all residents of Prospect Heights," said Lisa Cohen, urging elected officials to engage directly with residents who fear federal immigration enforcement.
Andrew De Lasallez of the Hannah Center asked the city to implement three demands: meet with community leaders to rebuild trust, add translation instructions and clear language access on the city’s immigration resources page, and support FOIA transparency and training about the Trust Act. He said a recent city email rejected one request and left other issues unresolved.
Speakers also pressed the police department to submit evidence from a December 2020 incident near Pawelawake Plaza to the Cook County state’s attorney for review under the county’s federal immigration enforcement protocol. "We will move forward with this understanding," De Lasallez said after staff characterized the city's review as finding no felony conduct by federal officers.
Data privacy and Block (ALPR) surveillance drew questions. Jennifer Olsavagantar, a data analyst, urged the council to adopt strict data‑retention limits, warrant requirements, transparency portals and public audit logs for any ALPR or surveillance systems and to publish how often Block assists investigations and the costs associated with transparency portals.
City staff acknowledged the concerns and pointed to recently posted resources; staff and council invited continued dialogue and public follow‑up. Several advocates said they would continue to document incidents and press for written policies and technical safeguards.
What's next: advocates asked for follow‑up meetings with staff and formal posting of surveillance transparency data; council staff encouraged written questions and FOIA submissions while noting ongoing constraints for redaction and resource costs.
