Crete: Detention center debate heats up
As former U.S. Rep. Debbie Halvorson and U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Chicago, both Democrats, head into the March 20 primary, the two veteran lawmakers who publicly clash on the Peotone airport debate, are finding some common ground.
They both oppose the proposed detention center in Crete that would house hundreds of illegal immigrants awaiting deportations.
"You don't want to be known as a prison town," Jackson told The Daily Journal, during a stop in Kankakee last week in his new campaign office. Both are vying for the 2nd Congressional District..
http://jcuanews.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/crete-residents-protest-proposed-detention-center/
Crete Residents Protest Proposed Detention Center
Events have been heating up in Crete, Ill., a south suburb of Chicago, where local Crete officials, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, and the private prison company Corrections Corporation of America, have been making plans to build a 750-bed immigrant detention center.
(Top photo: Attendees at the Crete Village Board meeting. Bottom photo: A protest sign appears at a site in Crete rumored to be the location of the proposed detention center.)
At an impassioned meeting held this past Monday night at the Crete Township hall, organized by concerned residents of Crete and the surrounding communities, and the Interfaith Committee for Detained Immigrants, a coalition in which JCUA is an active member, nearly 160 local residents listened intently to comments about the impact this private prison would have on their town and on undocumented immigrants.
Main concerns were property values, economic failure and inhumane treatment of immigrants. Crete residents show no sign of backing down on this issue and are determined to get answers from their town officials on a decision that has broad impact on Crete, the state of Illinois, and the immigration conversation taking place across the nation.
This campaign opposing the construction of this site has warranted attention from former U.S. Rep. Debbie Halvorson and current U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., who are currently facing off in the Democratic primary for congress in Illinois’ Second Congressional District, which includes Crete.
JCUA has been a strong and active supporter of these efforts.
Media coverage tells the story:
- Detention center talk angers Crete residents (Phil Kadner, Southtown Star)
- Planned immigrant detention center roils Crete (Chip Mitchell, Chicago Public Radio/WBEZ)
- Crete officials duck detention center foes (Thomas Finn, Southtown Star)
- Crete residents rally against proposed detention center (NWI Times)
- Halvorson says Jackson not doing enough to oppose immigration detention facility in Crete
Proposed Immigrant Detention Center Stirs Debate In Crete
January 23, 2012 10:03 PM
http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2012/01/23/proposed-immigrant-detention-center-stirs-debate-in-crete/
Some Crete residents balk at the idea of an immigrant detention center proposed for their village. (CBS)
U.S. immigration officials have selected the village as a possible new site for a lockup where hundreds could be detained.
But some residents are saying “Not in my back yard,” CBS 2’s Pamela Jones reports.
Immigrant Detention Center Proposal Scrutinized
Updated: Monday, 23 Jan 2012, 9:45 PM CST
Published : Monday, 23 Jan 2012, 9:45 PM CST
Published : Monday, 23 Jan 2012, 9:45 PM CST
Associated Press
Crete, Ill. - A debate about immigration
reform is taking shape in a small suburban Chicago community where local
and federal officials are considering placing an immigrant detention
center.The proposed facility in Crete -- around 35 miles south of Chicago -- is among several locations U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have chosen nationwide. ICE currently rents space from a county jail in the Chicago area to house immigrants facing deportation proceedings.
If the proposal is solidified, Crete officials would hire a private company to build and manage the facility with up to 700 beds, Crete Mayor Michael Einhorn told the Chicago Tribune (http://trib.in/wGFdGQ ) for a story published Monday.
But some residents and activists have already started campaigning against it. Residents oppose a prison-style center in their community of 8,000 people and allege a lack of transparency on the part of local and federal officials.
Advocates for immigrant rights say such centers break up families and many of those who are detained pose no safety risk, that not all who are awaiting deportation need to be detained. Those against the center have held public meetings on the issue, some of which have drawn hundreds of people.
"Would you want to buy a house next door to a prison?" said 46-year-old resident Jill Hornick.
Proponents argue that the detention center saves taxpayer money and will bring revenue and jobs to the suburb. Hundreds of detainees would be counted as Crete residents, bringing in more in tax revenue.
The proposed center comes as the Obama administration is deporting a record number of people, around 400,000 a year. Federal officials have proposed similar facilities, including one for a 1,500-bed detention facility near the Everglades in Florida, which has drawn big protests.
Still, city officials warn that the proposal is too preliminary and that's why they haven't discussed it much.
"The public needs to be patient here," Einhorn said. "(ICE) could change their mind tomorrow and decide not to do it."
Crete officials, ICE and a private Tennessee-based company -- Corrections Corporation of America -- have been talking about the proposal since at least 2010, according to the Tribune, which cites documents it obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.
The proposed center would be built on 70 acres of vacant farmland, according to village officials.
Lifelong Crete resident David Most, a farmer and business owner, said he wants his community to remain rural, but the detention center is a good option if development must happen.
"If we're going to have to put up with inconveniences and some new growth," he said, "why not get something out of it?"
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteQuestion: The President and Trustee's have posted on YouTube several citizens of Crete, asking them for their addresses. These are now posted online. Though when they are asked for their address their responses were in NW Crete or 2 blocks from proposed prison. Is this legal?
ReplyDeleteAlso why don't they have a meeting where there is room for everyone?
If there is anything you can do to help Crete, please do.
Thank you very much for being public about your problems in FL. You are in our prayers.
Oh, and I say this with kindness in my heart. Do not ever look to any outside entity to solve your problem.
Delete1. you will learn what strength you have all on your own.
2. you will become the experts on the subject of defeating them.
You are writing the book on it right now.
Enjoy the fight.
Don't sweat the name. It's all part of the public record. You want them to KNOW your names backwards and forwards. You want them to cringe when they see you.
ReplyDeleteBut, if you feel like it, get their addresses and post them. Check with your property appraisers office. Their appraisal information including address is part of the public record that you are entitled to.
Good luck. Welcome to the fight.
The meeting rooms being too small are something we've battled with here too. It's their modus operendi. They all of a sudden start enforcing capacity limits on rooms when they never had an issue with them it the past. Demand that your voices be heard.
This is all about YOU and not about CCA or ICE. It's YOUR home town.
You then need to organize to take your politicians out of office through recall or at the next election.
In the above article, there is a quote from a "David Most" (owner of "Most Feed and Garden" located in Crete). He isn't opposed to a jail according to his quote. Here may be the reason: Some have stated that he is the one selling his land to CCA for the planned detention center. Time to do some research.
DeleteYour David Most may be our Ron Bergeron. There's always a very powerful land baron behind it.
ReplyDeleteI can say this, universally. If you find somebody passionately in favor of the prison, they have an ulterior motive that is almost always money or power related. Always.
Find it. Create a blog and pound the message home.
Find out if any of your politicians signed letters of endorsement for the facility. It's CCA's recipe to get your federal officials to sign letters endorsing it.
Ask your Town clerk if she knows of any. If the Village possesses it, then it's a public record that you are entitled to.
Go in and meet your clerk if you don't know here. She's an independent entity who's major function is to ensure that public records are public even if her bosses are telling her to hide stuff.