On January 29, immigrant rights activist Flor Crisóstomo announced that she will refuse to report for deportation as ordered by Homeland Security and will take sanctuary in Adalberto United Methodist Church in Chicago's Humboldt Park neighborhood.

Crisóstomo's decision follows in the footsteps of fellow activist Elvira Arellano, who herself took sanctuary and defied a deportation order for more than a year before leaving sanctuary to embark on a nationwide speaking tour. In the course of the tour, Arrellano was seized, arrested, and deported.

Crisóstomo, a Mexican citizen driven to the U.S. because of NAFTA-driven economic policies, commented about the difficulty of also addressing xenophobic anti-immigrant policies in the U.S.: "They say they expect us to self-deport, but we cannot leave because of what U.S. economic policies have done to destroy jobs in our home countries. That is why the current policy will not end the system of undocumented labor. It will only drive us into worse and worse jobs."

Crisóstomo and Arellano have a shared history of activism besides sanctuary. The two activists also participated in a successful month-long hunger strike to win an immigration continuance.

Read more.

Past coverage: Two part interview with Elvira Arellano on Chicago Independent Television - part one | part two

Despite bitter cold and blizzard conditions, hundreds of concerned citizens rallied on January 29 in front of the Lakefront Theater on Chicago's Broadway Avenue to protest a benefit for Friends of the Israel Defense Force.

The protest — which included many Chicago-area Palestinian, Arab-American, and progressive Jews — considerably outnumbered the meager IDF turnout and counter-demonstration.

The protesters called an end to the latest Israeli siege of the Gaza Strip, which forced more than 500,000 Palestinians beyond the border into Egypt desperate for food and supplies, and has been referred to as "the biggest prison break in history."

Read more | Additional photos | Video: Stop the Siege on Gaza Now

Chicago Indymedia has once again proved itself as a news and organizing resource for Chicagoans concerned about social justice and the efforts for a better Chicago. The past year 2007 is no different; Chicago Indymedia has covered unserved and underserved stories, and has also broken stories that make a difference.

Chicago Indymedia is proud to present the 2007 Chicago Indymedia Year in Review.

Reverend Edward Pinkney is a longtime political activist in the nearby Michigan community of Benton Harbor. In an effort to combat waterfront gentrification, Pinkney had successfully led a recall effort against a corrupt Benton Harbor official. But the city fought back by charging Pinkney with voter fraud under an overbroad state law, and placed Pinkney on probation and under house arrest.

On December 13, Pinkney was charged again for violating his probation. The reason: he openly criticized the judge who sentenced him on dubious grounds. Pinkney has now been forced into jail, but has now responded back with a hunger strike which has now extended into a week. Full article from The Black Commentator

Additional Resources: BANCO: Black Autonomy Network Community Organization | Chicago Indymedia video: March to St. Joseph (2003) | Coverage from Pan-African Newswire | Coverage from the Black Commentator: May 10 and Dec. 13 | Media Mouse coverage

Both the Tribune and the Sun-Times reported on Friday, December 7, that four police torture victims under the infamous Jon Burge regime reached a collective $20 million settlement with the city.

However, it was also revealed in a subsequent newswire post that "[a]ttorneys for both sides in the four police torture cases were pledged to secrecy about the tentative settlement until it was to be broached before the City's Finance Committee on Monday. But in typical City of Chicago fashion, the story was "accidentally" leaked on Friday afternoon -– apparently by City attorneys — assuring that the news would be caught up in a "dead" news cycle just before the weekend."

Despite the settlement and the "burial" of the settlement story, the Burge controversy rages on. Dozens of unjust police torture cases remain without restitution, and those implicated in such torture remain unprosecuted.

Additional Resources: Police Torture in Chicago: The Chicago Reader's John Conroy Archive | Human Rights at Home: The Chicago Police Torture Archive | Summary of Amnesty International's Concerns on Police Abuse in Chicago

A Chicago IMC newswire post reports a dramatic improvement in the fortunes of more than two dozen student protesters at Morton High School who were threatened with expulsion for a holding a protest against the Iraq war. From the post: "In an abrupt turn-around, District 201 Superintendent [Ben] Nowakowski takes expulsions off the table and sends most student protestors back to school tomorrow [November 14].

"Less than 2 hours after stating he would release a comment on the looming student expulsions in a day or two, Dr. Ben Nowakowski, Superintendent of the J.S. Morton schools in suburban Berwyn issued a statement dropping all threat of expulsions and sending most students back to school on Wednesday [November 14]. More than two dozen students, were facing expulsion after an anti-war sit-in at the school on November first. " Read more

Grassroots efforts to defend the Morton West 25 generated national attention and support as thousands signed a petition initiated by a local chapter of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and word of the threatened expulsions spread across the Indymedia network and the progressive blogosphere and surfaced in the corporate press. "I don't regret the protest because it brought a lot of people to this question—about Iraq and what it's doing to our country," senior Joshua Rodriguez said. Update: Parents of Morton Student Protestors Shout Out Thanks

Additional Coverage: Chicago Free Speech Zone | DC IMC | NYC IMC | Houston IMC Radio | Milwaukee IMC

From the newswire: "Over 30 anti-war protestors at Morton West High School in Berwyn face expulsion for a demonstration at the school on Thursday…More than 70 students participated in a sit-in against the Iraq War on All Saint's Day, Thursday, November 1st. It began third hour when dozens of students gathered quietly in the lunchroom at Morton West High School and refused to leave.

"Students report that they were promised that there would be no charges besides cutting classes if they took their protest outside so as not to disturb the school day. The students complied, and were led to a corner outside the cafeteria where they sang songs and held signs while classes resumed.

"The school called the homes of many of the protestors. Those whose parents arrived before the end of school and took their students home, or left before the protest ended at the final bell, received 3-5 days suspension. All others, an estimated 37 received 10 days suspension and expulsion papers. Parents report that [school Superindendent Ben] Nowakowski stated those who are seventeen will also face police charges." Read more

Updates: Morton Parents Call for Amnesty | Parents of Suspended Morton West Students Hold Press Conference [ 2 ] | Morton School Officials Pressure Students to Finger Ringleader | Rainbow PUSH Coalition Fights for Morton West Students

Additional Resources: Superintendent statement | Emergency Petition

Related Stories: Free Speech Not on Curriculum for Berwyn High Schoolers | Democracy Now! coverage | New York Times coverage | Prensa Latina | Sun-Times Editorial | Parents, activists rip school board - Chicago Tribune

Progressive labor activists are hailing the victory of a dissident slate in one of the nation's most closely watched union elections. On Oct. 22, the U.S. Department of Labor announced the winners of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) officers’ election for Local 743 — the 743 New Leadership Slate, a progressive dissident project that defeated the incumbent Ford-Galvan Unity Slate. The rank-and-file victory comes in the wake of a twelve-year battle against entrenched corruption and criminality in the union leadership, including a series of past elections marred by vote fraud, intimidation, graft and the old guard's longstanding ties to the Outfit. Read more.