House Republicans reject amendment to unmask ICE

Yesterday, Feb. 16, State Rep. Matt Pierce (D-Bloomington) offered an amendment to Senate Bill 160. The amendment would have required the Law Enforcement Training Board to adopt a statewide policy prohibiting officers from wearing a mask during official duties, with exceptions for situations such as tactical operations and undercover work. It also would have made it a class A misdemeanor for a law enforcement officer to wear a mask with the intent to commit or conceal the commission of a criminal act. It would have applied to federal law enforcement agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).  House Republicans voted down the amendment 33-59.

Pierce released the following statement: 

“I asked Republicans what kind of country and state they want to live in today. Do we want to live in a nation or state where masked agents with no identification can stop and demand proof of citizenship, and then arrest and send us off to a distant detention center? 

“I don’t want to live in that kind of state or country. I don’t want to live in a place where masked agents demand to see your papers on the street. That is a big step towards authoritarian government.

“Republicans love to talk about the dangers of big government. We hear complaints about interference with property rights or too much regulation of businesses. Yet masked agents on the streets of America violating the constitutional rights of its residents, including unjustifiable killings, are met with deafening silence.

“This amendment was a chance for the General Assembly to stand up and demand the federal government respect our freedoms and liberties. Instead, Republicans said ‘no’ to preserving what so many of us took for granted.”