Chicago mayor defies federal immigration enforcement with ‘ICE-free’ zones
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson signed an executive order on Monday creating “ICE-free” zones as he attempts to prohibit federal law enforcement from using city property
by Summer Lane | October 6, 2025
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson signed an executive order on Monday that aims to stand in the way of federal immigration enforcement operations amid the Trump administration’s nationwide push to establish law and order in America’s most troubled cities.
This new order establishes “ICE Free Zones” and is meant to “prohibit federal immigration agents from using any City-owned property in their ongoing operations in Chicago,” according to the mayor’s office.
Mayor Johnson said in a statement, “We will not tolerate ICE agents violating our residents’ constitutional rights nor will we allow the federal government to disregard our local authority. ICE agents are detaining elected officials, tear-gassing protestors, children, and Chicago police officers, and abusing Chicago residents. We will not stand for that in our city.”
Johnson’s EO appears to be a preemptive shot across the bow, since it seems likely that President Trump may eventually order federal troops into Chicago.
Currently, the president has authorized a massive crime crackdown in Portland, Oregon. President Trump has also famously cleaned up crime in Washington, D.C., following a federal crime crackdown in the nation’s capital.
Despite Mayor Johnson’s bold rhetoric, defiance of federal immigration enforcement may come with a hefty cost. Just before the Trump administration took power last year, Border Czar Tom Homan told Fox News that he would prosecute any American mayor who harbors illegal aliens.
“They can sit back and watch us…but there are laws on the books that we will prosecute,” Homan said. “…If you knowingly conceal or harbor illegal aliens from ICE, that is a felony. When I was an agent a long time ago, I arrested U.S. citizens for harboring an alien in their home or place of employment.”
It is unclear if Mayor Johnson’s “ICE Free Zone” executive order steps over a line that would require prosecution, in Homan’s view.
However, the White House communication response account, Rapid Response 47, described Johnson’s action as “SICK.”
“He is aiding and abetting criminal illegal immigrant killers, rapists, traffickers, and gang bangers,” the account stated.
