Mayor Rob Rue, who initiated the resolution, said it urges all federal law enforcement who operate in the city to follow the city’s policy, ordinances and police operational requirements relating to masks and identification. “We implore federal law enforcement agents to adhere to these requirements to protect public safety and promote accountability,” Rue said.
City Commissioner Larry Ricketts, prior to the resolution’s proposal, said he’d support it for safety reasons, pointing to the neo-Nazi group who demonstrated in the city in the summer of 2024. The group wore masks and many carried guns while yelling hateful rhetoric.
“How are we to know a week from tomorrow the people that are showing up here in masks are not the same people? It’s very easy to go out and buy camouflage; it’s very easy to go out and buy identification that somehow makes you look like a law enforcement officer,” Ricketts said.
Residents like Matthew Ison highlighted ICE actions in places like Minneapolis, where agents within the last few weeks shot and killed two citizens. He said this behavior shows “the current ranks of ICE do not have the basic standard of moral decency that should be held of law enforcement of any level in this country, nor do they seem to have a basic understanding of citizens and occupants of this country’s constitutional rights regarding demonstrating, protesting and expressing their political opinions.”
Ison was the first to bring up limiting the agency’s ability to wear masks within the city limits. He also urged instruction to local law enforcement that “their legal obligations are to protect the citizens of this city” and if ICE endangers them, local officials should protect community members.
“We could be on the precipice of a very, very dangerous and ugly situation, and while it is really scary looking back on it, I don’t think that you want your names associated with what could be happening and what might be happening to the city,” Ison said.
Temporary Protected Status, the legal way in which many of Springfield’s 10-15,000 Haitians are in the country, was initially set to end Feb. 3, 2026 after the Biden administration extended it, but the Department of Homeland Security announced an official termination would happen Sept. 2, 2025, saying that conditions in Haiti had improved and its immigrants no longer meet the conditions for TPS.
A federal judge recently ruled that ending TPS was unlawful, blocking the program from ending early, but an appeal is expected. TPS is still set to expire Feb. 3, 2026 as of now. Multiple lawsuits challenging the ending are ongoing.
If the status is ended, hundreds of thousands of Haitian immigrants in the country will now be living here illegally.
Indivisible Springfield organizer Jen Casto advocated against the federal government ending TPS and for all humans to be treated with “dignity and respect.”
“When we allow policies rooted in fear or cruelty to take hold, we lose something essential to our moral compass. Reasonable people should not tolerate cruelty and justice oppression or the exploitation of the most vulnerable,” Casto said. “We should not tolerate prejudice, blind loyalty, hypocrisy or apathy, whether it comes from government, political parties, industry, religion or individuals. When harm is happening, silence is not neutrality; it is acceptance.”
Resident Devon Hendricks brought attention to the harmful rhetoric some have shared when speaking about Haitian immigrants and himself. Hendricks, who is Black, said he has been subject to racism while Haitians have been compared to animals.
Hendricks echoed concerns about ICE shootings and said Haitians who have come to Springfield have helped the city.
Molly Finch shared concerns about children in the case of ICE activity and urged local schools to not go about “business as usual,” saying many feel their concerns have been dismissed. She urged the commission to support the ICE resolution to protect residents.
“If a masked stranger with a gun approaches your child, no matter who you are, no matter what side of the aisle, your alarm bells go off. If a masked stranger claims authority and you don’t feel reassured, you feel threatened, because they could be anyone,” Finch said. “Situations escalate faster. You get mistakes, misidentification and panic. Police work becomes harder.”
Credit: Jessica Orozco
Credit: Jessica Orozco
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