US Representative Jesse Jackson Jr, State Representative Eddie Acevedo, Alderman Proco “Joe” Moreno, Representative Elizabeth Hernandez, community and faith leaders, and residents of south-suburban Crete held a press conference to denounce the possible construction of privatized immigration detention center in Crete, Illinois and sent a clear message to the Corrections Corporation of America – Illinois is not Arizona.

The Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), the nation’s most notorious builder and operator of private prisons, has targeted the south suburban village of Crete as the site of a new detention facility to house as many as 788 federal immigration detainees. Through its association with the American Legislative Exchange Committee (ALEC), CCA was also instrumental in developing Arizona’s immigration law, SB1070. Lawsuits challenging SB 1070 will come before the US Supreme Court next week.

The Illinois House of Representatives is now considering legislation (SB 1064, sponsored by Sen. Antonio Munoz and Rep. Edward Acevedo) that would block CCA from running private detention facilities in our state.