When I ran for office, I made it clear: I’m just some guy. We already needed big change in Louisville to meet the needs of the working class, and now with the fascist Donald Trump back in the White House our most vulnerable community members need us to step-up and help protect them more than ever. I was honest with you that I can’t do any of that by myself, that we are building a movement, and you and I would need to organize together once I was sworn in.

That’s exactly what I’m asking for right now.

I have introduced legislation at the Louisville Metro Council to amend our mask ban ordinance. This amendment would make clear that there is no exception to our already existing mask ban for law enforcement officers attempting to conceal their identity. Not LMPD, not the Kentucky State Police, not the FBI…and not ICE.

At the last Public Safety Committee meeting, the Republican committee chair did not call the legislation, cancelled the next regularly scheduled committee meeting, and declared that there would be a special meeting of the committee on December 1st at 4:00pm. If you want to organize to help protect our community from ICE, now is the time to act!

We need people to:

1. Fill out this form to tell your Metro Council Representative that you want the Mask Ban Ordinance Amendment to pass.

2. Contact the committee members of the Public Safety Committee and tell them you want them to pass the legislation out of committee to be voted on by the full council:

1. Chair Dan Seum R13 dan.seum@louisvilleky.gov, 502-574-1113

2. Vice Chair Tammy Hawkins D1 tammy.hawkins@louisvilleky.gov 502-574-1101

3. Councilwoman Barbara Shanklin D2 barbara.shanklin@louisvilleky.gov 502-574-1102,

4. Councilwoman Shameka Parrish-Wright D3 shameka.parrish-wright@louisvilleky.gov 502-574-1103

5. Councilman Ken Herndon D4 ken.herndon@louisvilleky.gov 502-574-1104

6. Councilman Jonathan Joseph R12 jonathan.joseph@louisvilleky.gov 502-574-1112

7. Councilman Anthony Piagentini R19 anthony.piagentini@louisvilleky.gov 502-574-1119

8. Councilwoman Betsy Ruhe D21 betsy.ruhe@louisvilleky.gov 502-574-1121

9. Councilwoman Ginny Mulvey-Woolridge R24 ginny.mulveywoolridge@louisvilleky.gov 502-574-1124

3. Share our call to action across social media and directly with our friends, our family, our neighbors, our coworkers and our classmates. Let them know that we have a tool to stand up to ICE and stop them from anonymously terrorizing our city, but we need the Louisville Metro Council to pass this amendment to our mask ban to do it. Scroll down for social media links!

4. Pack the Metro Council Chambers on December 1st at 4:00pm to show your support! Chambers are on the 3rd floor at 601 W Jefferson Street.

I introduced this amendment because people in District 6 have asked for it after seeing footage of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents regularly wearing masks while engaged in enforcement activities nationwide, concealing their identities during immigration raids.

That’s wrong.

It erodes public trust. It greatly reduces the likelihood of accountability for civil rights violations. It increases the chances that someone could impersonate an officer, catastrophically harm someone—or worse—and never be caught.

People across the United States are terrified by the unaccountable and unconstitutional actions taken by ICE in recent months. Louisville should not be a place where secret police will operate in our streets, dragging people away from our homes, our schools, our workplaces, our places of worship, or even our hospitals or courts. Law enforcement officers are expected to be identifiable as public servants, to uphold the civil liberties of our residents.

This is not new legislation targeting law enforcement. It just makes it clear that the police aren’t above the laws that apply to everyone else. It wouldn’t even remove any existing language because we already don’t have an exception in our city’s mask prohibition for police to use masks to hide their identity. It just makes it clear that police, including ICE, aren’t above the law, just like they can’t commit arson or drive drunk in our streets. Other occupational reasons for wearing a mask, such as safety precautions or undercover police work, will not be prohibited.

In 2017, Louisville Metro Government passed a separation ordinance that states that local resources will not be used for Federal immigration enforcement, and enshrines that everyone in Louisville is entitled to equal protection, regardless of their immigration status. I believe that protection extends to not granting ICE agents an exemption from our already existing ordinance banning the wearing of masks.

The state of California recently passed a statewide prohibition on law enforcement masking, and Chicago’s Mayor reaffirmed in August that police wearing masks isn’t allowed there either and that federal agents would be expected to comply. People across the United States know that legitimate police shouldn’t wear masks, especially not when they’re often in plain clothes, hauling people away in unmarked vehicles.

That’s scary! And elected leaders are doing something about it elsewhere. It’s time for Louisville to stand up for our people and the rule of law, and do the same.

I’ll admit it: I don’t like the mask ban. I think people should be allowed to wear masks for medical reasons without facing scrutiny or suspicion, without subjective judgement calls from police on who they’ll stop or question; but the law is the law, and if we’re going to have a mask ban, then it should be clear that it applies to everyone, including ICE. If there are members of the Metro Council who don’t like that, then they should state their case to the public why they believe that police should be able to wear masks to conceal their identities while you or I can’t and why they believe that makes us safer. Or they can appeal the ban altogether if that’s their preference, but as long as there’s going to be a mask ban, I think it should apply to police, including ICE.

Solidarity,
Councilman JP Lyninger
District 6