Controversial Signs in North Chicago and Waukegan Stir Concerns Among Immigrant Communities

In Waukegan and North Chicago, concerning signs have been mysteriously appearing on light poles and trees since last Monday, sparking unease among residents.

As quickly as locals remove these signs, new ones seem to replace them. The police in both areas have now been alerted to the ongoing issue.

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Among the various signs, one features a shark with “ICE” written across it, while another displays a roughly drawn alien figure over target practice images, accompanied by the term “MAGA.” These alarming visuals began surfacing over a week ago.

Pastor Julie Contreras of United Giving Hope commented, “This is a direct threat to the undocumented. This person would be telling us right here that he is ready to shoot someone.”

Resident Aurora Flores recounted her efforts, stating she has personally removed approximately a dozen of these signs.

“When I saw one, we decided to investigate and ended up finding a bunch of them in front of different homes. It’s in front of high-traffic areas,” Flores said.

Surveillance video from the area near Ridgeland and Jackson appears to show someone with a ladder putting up one of the signs in the middle of the night. The time stamp partially blocks the footage.

“I recognized immediately the shark imagery that they tend to use. It shows birthday balloons so that children take notice and then can be frightened by the words written on it,” Flores said.

Residents gathered in Waukegan on Sunday to speak out against what they view as a clear threat to the immigrant community. The first reports started coming in from North Chicago, where new ones appeared overnight, drawing the attention of police there.

“I happened to look out the window and saw one car, police sitting right there. And then, another pulled up,” said North Chicago resident Cordell Wise.

Waukegan Mayor Sam Cunningham spoke out against the signs and whomever is behind them.

“This is not acceptable for anybody, regardless of what side you want to be on, freedom of speech. This is pure hatred,” Cunningham said.

Cunningham encouraged anyone who comes across the signs to call police to report them. He told residents not to try to take them down themselves, saying instead to wait for the authorities to do so.