Highland Park Hosts Vigil To End Migrant Detention Camps

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — Thousands of people to take part in an international candlelight vigil Friday to protest the federal government's treatment of migrants and asylum seekers. National organizers from the group Lights for Liberty said migrants are being held in inhumane condition and demanded the closure of detention facilities.

One of hundreds of local events across nearly 20 countries is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Robert M. Buhai Plaza at Port Clinton, 600 Central Ave. Hosts include Tenth Congressional District Democrats, Moraine Township Democrats and North Shore Indivisible. Music and singing are planned and a candle lighting is set for 9 p.m.

Mary Meg McCarthy, executive director of the Heartland Alliance National Immigrant Justice Center, Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering and state Rep. Bob Morgan are all scheduled to speak at the vigil, which is one of at least 34 planned across Illinois.

"Now is the time for every person to stand up and say, 'We will not accept this!' No more hesitating. No more denial. No more fear. We need to be bold, and loud, and unrelenting. That’s the only way we can stop this," said activist and organizer Kristin Mink, in a statement.

Other events are planned in El Paso, Texas, where a report from the Inspector General Office at of the Department of Homeland Security found dangerous overcrowding and where some migrants have been held outdoors without running water, and in Homestead, Florida, where an expanding child detention facility is operated by the private company Caliburn International, according to organizers.

"Lights for Liberty began with a series of tweets I drafted, in which I shared the horrors that one of our co-founders, attorney Toby Gialluca, had seen inside the camps," said Lights for Liberty co-founder Elizabeth Cronise McLaughlin, in a statement. "Since then, we’ve watched thousands of ordinary people come together to organize events and fight back worldwide."

"One month and one day later, millions around the world will stand in vigil and in outrage against this administration’s heartless policies and crimes against humanity," McLaughlin continued. "We intend to be here for as long as it takes, until every last detainee, in every last camp, is free."

"I’ve been inside these camps, and the conditions are beyond description. Twenty-four adults and six children that we know of have already died as a result," added Gialluca, a lawyer and Lights for Liberty organizer. "The world must take a stand against this administration and stop these camps before more lives are lost."

Organizers warned the government is moving refugees onto military facilities with a lack of oversight from lawyers, human rights monitors and journalists.

"The Trump administration’s immigration policies and detention camps meet the United Nations’ definition of genocide and crimes against humanity," said Elizabeth Cronise McLaughlin, lawyer, activist and organizer. "Congress is refusing to stop the president and his policies. We cannot allow these atrocities to be perpetrated in our name."

Organizers of the event at Port Clinton Square said parking would be available at nearby lots and structures.