AURORA – State Senator Cristina Castro (D- Elgin) is proud to see the signing of a measure that will prohibit state and local law enforcement officials from arresting individuals for immigration violations and encourage residents to report crimes without fear of jeopardizing their immigration status.

“There is no reason for law enforcement officials to ask someone about their immigration status when they report a crime,” said Castro, a co-sponsor of the legislation. “This law will do more to support and empower immigrants in our community who often fear interactions, even positive ones, with law enforcement officials.”

CHICAGO – This week, State Senator Cristina Castro (D- Elgin) spoke at an event for the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights to urge the U.S. Congress to advance a broad pathway to citizenship in the upcoming federal budget reconciliation.

“Illinois is a leader when it comes to protecting and supporting immigrants,” said Castro, co-chair of the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus. “It is time for Congress to follow suit by passing a budget package that will allow immigrants in Illinois and across the country a true path to citizenship.”

In the last five years, the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus has made it a top priority to make Illinois the most immigrant-friendly state in the country. With the recent partial rollback of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals – otherwise known as DACA – it is even more important that the federal government commit to strengthening and supporting immigrants across the nation.

STREAMWOOD – State Senator Cristina Castro (D- Elgin) hosted a free shred day event to allow residents to shred documents with personal information like bank statements, outdated medical records, tax returns and more. The event was in conjunction with State Rep. Fred Crespo, Elgin State Bank and Streamwood Park District.

“Individuals and businesses can fall victim to fraud if personal documents get into the wrong hands,” Castro said. “Shredding documents is a great way to get some peace of mind about where their important information ends up.”

ELGIN – State Senator Cristina Castro (D- Elgin) spent Monday afternoon harvesting vegetables to distribute to local college students who struggle with food insecurity with Elgin Community College students at the Advocate Sherman Natural Prairie and Community Garden.

"In the midst of this pandemic we have found people who have never struggled accessing food before needing to go to food pantries," Castro said. “It's amazing to see these students giving back and helping their classmates."