Investigation: Chicago Ignored Dozens of Warnings of Migrant Shelter Conditions Before Child’s Death
Despite warnings, numerous hospitalizations and dozens of reports, Chicago officials continuously funneled thousands of migrants into an industrial warehouse that was never meant to house people.
Borderless compiled a list of organizations across the Chicagoland area that provide free or low-cost mental health support.
Diane Bou KhalilFebruary 20, 2024
Chicago shelters house over 15,000 migrants. With eviction notices incoming, Oak Park and local volunteers are looking for solutions.
Katrina PhamFebruary 6, 2024
Aldermen called for a more transparent grievance process and accountability measures for Favorite Healthcare Staffing to ensure better treatment of migrants at shelters.
Katrina PhamFebruary 1, 2024
The heat mapping study, dubbed Heat Watch Chicago, showed that neighborhoods on the city's South Side were the hottest and residents there were the most vulnerable to extreme weather.
Liuan HuskaJanuary 29, 2024
Support groups are trying to address the obstacles to care, including language barriers and a persistent shortage of mental health workers.
Kristen Schorsch, WBEZJanuary 18, 2024
The Report for America corps member will cover the intersection of immigration and the environment.
Mauricio PeñaJanuary 11, 2024
A long-delayed radiation cleanup, an all-women mariachi band, Afghans building community through soccer, and more stories Borderless reported on Chicago’s immigrant communities.
Mauricio PeñaDecember 26, 2023
The death of the boy comes just days after a Borderless investigation found inhumane living conditions at the shelter in Pilsen.
Mauricio PeñaDecember 18, 2023
Although President Biden expanded temporary protected status for Venezuelans, TPS’ language barriers, long wait times and costly application fees make it difficult for many immigrants to apply.
Katrina PhamDecember 11, 2023
New Life Centers' New Vecino program, funded by the state, provides asylum seekers with wraparound services and furniture for new apartments.
Sebastian HidalgoDecember 4, 2023
Homeless children have certain rights aimed at maintaining stability for them at school, including the ability to stay at the school they’ve been attending.
Reema Amin, Chalkbeat ChicagoNovember 28, 2023
The Pilsen Food Pantry provides essentials, including food, clothing, and sleeping bags, to new migrants living in local police stations and shelters.
Chelsea VerstegenNovember 20, 2023
A language access bill making its way through Springfield would create a new office tasked with bringing interpretation and translation services to state agencies for many non-native English speakers.
Maia McDonaldOctober 30, 2023
Immigrant organizers called for increased funding for community members helping migrants bused to Chicago.
Katrina PhamJuly 25, 2023
As a lawsuit against data broker LexisNexis awaits court determination, local advocates and officials look to amend Cook County’s ICE detainer ordinance.
Chelsea VerstegenJuly 11, 2023
Starting July 1, Illinois will limit access to programs that provide medical coverage for undocumented immigrants and low-income lawful permanent residents. Here’s what those programs do and how to enroll.
Katrina PhamJune 29, 2023
Frank Sandoval had to leave Venezuela to save his life. He became a lawyer to help others seek asylum. After a five-year process, he was reunited with his wife and daughter in Chicago.
Chelsea VerstegenJune 2, 2023
Patrice Lawrence of the UndocuBlack Network explains how U.S. policies are impacting Black immigration from Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America.
Jillian MeleroMay 26, 2023
If passed, the bill would implement universal health insurance for low-income residents, regardless of immigration status.
Adriana Martinez-SmileyMay 19, 2023
As Gov. Pritzker declares an end to the public health emergency brought on by the pandemic and subsequent relief funds, four community-led efforts work to make sure their neighbors’ needs are still met.
Chelsea VerstegenMay 17, 2023
As the Trump-era rule ends Thursday, Biden plans to enact strict immigration policies toward asylum seekers and send more troops to the U.S.-Mexico border.
Reema SalehMay 11, 2023
The plan comes after the city's short-notice rollout of a migrant shelter in neighboring Woodlawn sparked months of outrage. Officials will host a meeting on the plan Thursday.
Maxwell EvansMay 2, 2023
Mayor Lori Lightfoot has said the city already doesn't have enough space for the migrants who are here — and the answer to problems at the border isn't busing people to Chicago.
Mack LiedermanMay 1, 2023
More than 200 migrants came together to enjoy a free dinner and live music at the First Presbyterian Church of Chicago.
Jonathan AguilarApril 21, 2023
Immigrant demonstrators called for the end of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the detainment and surveillance of immigrants.
Diane Bou KhalilMarch 30, 2023
The Chicago ICE Field Office conducted more than 13,000 searches of the LexisNexis database between March and September 2021.
Chelsea VerstegenMarch 2, 2023
The Mural Movement started as a beautification project but has grown to provide solace and support for community members — generational or recently arrived.
Martha ContrerasFebruary 9, 2023
Immigrants seeking U visas are being blocked by two sergeants who were previously involved in controversial shootings and on the verge of being fired.
Carlos BallesterosJanuary 17, 2023
Why we worked on these stories, how our collaboration with Block Club Chicago came together and what we learned.
Diane Bou KhalilDecember 15, 2022
Illinois Venezuelan Alliance cofounder Ana Gil Garcia explains why 25% of Venezuela’s population has left Venezuela and how Chicagoans are welcoming Venezuelan migrants.
Diane Bou KhalilDecember 1, 2022
Poet Javier Zamora took a three-thousand mile journey from El Salvador to the United States as a boy to reunite with his parents.
Borderless Magazine StaffNovember 3, 2022
We answer your questions about asylum rules and the differences between asylum seekers, refugees, migrants and more.
Diane Bou KhalilOctober 20, 2022
The arrivals of more than two thousand migrants sent to Chicago from Texas are exacerbating the need for attorneys who handle asylum cases.
Chelsea VerstegenOctober 13, 2022
In his new book, Reece Jones traces the Border Patrol’s growth into a militarized force that operates in large swaths of the United States.
Borderless Magazine StaffAugust 10, 2022
Al-Amin Porosh has helped fellow detainees navigate an opaque immigrant detention system – and built a community behind bars.
Youcef O. BounabAugust 4, 2022
A National Immigrant Justice Center lawsuit alleges that detained immigrants are being held in inhumane conditions, while Clay County misuses the money they receive from ICE to care for detainees.
Chelsea VerstegenJune 8, 2022
Illinois’ New Health Care Program for Undocumented Seniors Leaves Some of the Most Vulnerable Behind
The program enrolled over 9,000 people in its first year, but doesn’t cover long-term care — a dangerous pitfall for many undocumented seniors.
Detained immigrants and their families, attorneys, and advocates say what the end of immigration detention in Illinois has meant for them.
Carlos BallesterosFebruary 16, 2022
Elvira Arellano retells the story of when she took a stand to fight for her son and her work to protect undocumented immigrants.
Leslie HurtadoFebruary 15, 2022
Five years after President Trump enacted the Muslim travel ban, Chicago immigrants share how their lives were changed by the policy.
Ata YounanFebruary 8, 2022
A new book by Reece Jones chronicles the aftermath of Trump’s ban on nationals from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.
Borderless Magazine StaffJanuary 25, 2022
A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by two Illinois counties hoping to keep their lucrative ICE detention contracts. Those contracts are now set to be phased out starting Jan. 1.
Carlos BallesterosDecember 7, 2021
Chicago pastor Emma Lozano discusses the movement to keep undocumented immigrants with their families and a related MCA exhibit.
Michelle KanaarNovember 23, 2021
Officials in McHenry and Kankakee counties have sued the state to block implementation of a law that would require them to cancel their ICE detention contracts.
Carlos BallesterosNovember 19, 2021
Organizers are calling for alternatives to facilities for unaccompanied Afghan refugee children run by Chicago nonprofit Heartland Alliance.
Chelsea VerstegenNovember 11, 2021
Protestors halted traffic as they called for a pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S.
Diane Bou KhalilNovember 4, 2021
Some Afghan children at a Chicago shelter have hurt themselves or others, leaving workers overwhelmed. Employees say the shelter has never experienced this level of chaos and isn’t equipped to provide kids with services they need.
Melissa SanchezOctober 28, 2021
A confusing rollout has left many immigrants detained by ICE relying on local governments to get a COVID vaccine.
Adriana RezalOctober 13, 2021
After photos of Border Patrol agents whipping Haitian asylum seekers were made public, immigrant advocates are calling for an end to Title 42 deportations.
Borderless Magazine StaffSeptember 23, 2021
The developer who ordered the eviction will demolish the Little Village building that housed the community space La Casa del Inmigrante.
Alexandra ArriagaSeptember 16, 2021
But a lack of funding and personnel could drastically limit how many immigrants the county can represent.
Carlos BallesterosAugust 30, 2021
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker signed the Illinois Way Forward Act today, which will end immigrant detention in the state in 2022 and expand protections for immigrant communities.
Nissa RheeAugust 2, 2021
Both President Biden and Illinois Gov. Pritzker have recently changed immigration policies to better protect undocumented families. But for one local father of five, those changes have not gone far enough.
Adriana RezalJune 30, 2021
The Midwest Immigration Bond Fund Coalition has raised more than $35,000 to bail out detained immigrants from Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Kentucky.
Alexandra ArriagaJune 9, 2021
A bill passed Monday by the Illinois General Assembly would allow the Cook County public defender’s office to represent immigrants at the Chicago Immigration Court.
Carlos BallesterosJune 3, 2021
A class action lawsuit is pressuring the government to process freedom of information requests for critical immigration documents faster. However, immigrants and advocates worry that the recent changes are not enough.
Alexander ShurJune 1, 2021
The Illinois General Assembly passed a sweeping immigration bill that would close all immigrant detention centers in the state and severely restrict how local law enforcement can collaborate with federal immigration agents.
Carlos BallesterosJune 1, 2021
A Chicago mother explains how her husband’s 15-year-old conviction led to three deportations and a family torn apart.
Rita OcegueraApril 27, 2021
Hena Mansori, the head of the new immigration unit at the Cook County Public Defender's Office, offers advice for noncitizens who come into contact with the justice system.
Rita OcegueraApril 1, 2021
A new unit within the Cook County public defender's office wants better representation for noncitizens clients at risk of being deported.
Carlos BallesterosMarch 31, 2021
Books for Migrants provides LGBTQ migrants in detention a book of their choice every month.
Ata YounanMarch 17, 2021
Mexico’s Casa de Colores has provided a home to a group of Salvadoran transgender women while they wait for asylum in the United States.
Claudia HernándezMarch 11, 2021
In the midst of a housing crisis that has left immigrant renters among the most vulnerable, a group of immigrant punk rock musicians are fighting to stay at a commercial building they’ve called home for years.
Alexandra ArriagaFebruary 24, 2021
Alderman Rossana Rodriguez-Sanchez representing Chicago’s 33rd Ward speaks about Chicago as a Sanctuary City and it’s new Welcoming City Ordinance, which provides expanded protections to immigrants.
Diane Bou KhalilFebruary 10, 2021
A group of congressional Democrats, led by U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” García of Illinois, is renewing the push for sweeping legislation that would dismantle many segments of the so-called prison-to-deportation pipeline.
Carlos BallesterosFebruary 2, 2021
Local organizers share the immigration policies that they believe President Biden should prioritize.
Diane Bou KhalilJanuary 20, 2021
After applying for deportation relief in a Chicago suburb, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico faces anti-immigration policies and bureaucratic delays.
Yilun ChengJanuary 13, 2021
After spending over 10 months detained by ICE, an immigrant from Benin hopes to raise $3,400 this week to support 30 families.
Chelsea VerstegenDecember 15, 2020
Black Lives Matter protests and the growing movement to disband Nigeria’s controversial SARS police unit are driving urgent conversations on race and identity among people of the African diaspora.
Sarah LuyengiDecember 2, 2020
During the day, immigrant teenagers attend high school. At night, they work in factories to pay debts to smugglers and send money to family. The authorities aren’t surprised by child labor. They’re also not doing much about it.
Melissa SanchezNovember 23, 2020
Cheaper medicine and doctor visits have drawn Mexican-Americans to Ciudad Juárez during the pandemic, despite concerns about COVID.
Claudia HernándezOctober 28, 2020
Allegations include guards attacking victims in camera “blind spots” and telling them that “no one would believe” them in ICE detention centers, which imprison about 50,000 immigrants each year at a taxpayer expense of $2.7 billion.
Lomi KrielSeptember 17, 2020
Illinois Migrant Council’s Miguel Sarmiento answers questions about migrant farmworker’s rights to salary, benefits, and protection during COVID.
Diane Bou KhalilSeptember 9, 2020
How Trump’s new executive order impacts American companies and immigrants who work or want to work in the United States.
Claudia HernándezJuly 8, 2020
The National Association of Immigration Judges' Samuel Cole talks about a Trump administration rule that he says muzzles judges.
Diane Bou KhalilJuly 8, 2020
For Mexican immigrant Selina Armenta, today’s Supreme Court decision on DACA means that her life can remain stable a little longer.
Francisco VelazquezJune 18, 2020