Chicago City Council bans officers tied to extremist groups

The Chicago City Council voted 28-21 to bar Chicago Police Department officers with ties to extremist groups such as the Proud Boys or Oath Keepers from serving, moving investigations of alleged ties or activity to an independent watchdog office.

By Wednesday night, the fight inside Chicago City Hall wasn’t just about policy. It was about who gets protected, who gets judged, and what the city owes the public after years of allegations surrounding extremism within law enforcement.

The City Council voted 28-21 to ban officers with ties to extremist groups like the far-right Proud Boys or Oath Keepers from serving in the Chicago Police Department. The ordinance, sponsored by Ald. Matt Martin (47th). prohibits officers from engaging in “extremist activities. ” a term defined in the measure as any attempt to overthrow the U.S. government through violence or “unconstitutional means.”.

The ban also reaches participation. It bars police from actively participating in extremist groups, including fundraising, recruiting, or displaying tattoos meant to uplift extremist groups.

Under the new ordinance, alleged extremist activities or ties to extremist groups will be investigated by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, an independent city watchdog, rather than the department’s internal investigatory unit.

In his appeal to colleagues. Martin argued Chicago must be ready for federal moves he cited as examples of how the danger can escalate. He pointed to President Donald Trump’s Day 1 signing of roughly 1. 500 pardons and commutations for those convicted of attacking the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Martin also said the protections are meant to guard against extremism that can extend beyond any single presidency.

“These definitions [of extremism] are content-neutral, meaning that they give no weight whatsoever to someone’s political leanings,” Martin said.

The push is backed by prior scrutiny. Martin cited a 2024 report from city Inspector General Deborah Witzburg. which stated “the city’s handling of extremism in its police ranks has fallen short.” He also noted that at least a dozen Chicago police officials were previously investigated for their alleged ties to the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys—extremist groups whose members played a key role in the Jan. 6 riot.

The measure follows a joint investigation by the Chicago Sun-Times and WBEZ called “Extremism in the Ranks,” which documented troubling allegations against Chicago cops on a leaked roster of an anti-government group and the efforts to hold those officers accountable.

For supporters. the debate quickly narrowed to something personal: whether the city will treat the issue as settled enough to act. Ald. Demon Yancy (5th). who calls himself a “cop kid” because his dad served in CPD. rejected the idea that the question should be argued at all. He clapped back at opponents saying it’s “way past ridiculous” to debate “whether racism exists and … whether it exists in the police department.” Yancy said. “We talk about the role of police being the thin blue line. … When the ‘thin blue line’ includes bad guys. it makes it really hard to think about how we mend the relationship between police and community.”.

Opponents saw the ordinance differently, and the argument turned sharp.

Ald. Anthony Napolitano (41st). a former police officer. backed the idea of targeting white supremacists—but not by singling out police as the vehicle for change. He said, “Hell yeah, go after the white supremacists, hell yeah!. But go after them in every department,” and he claimed the ordinance “once again demonizes” cops. Napolitano said supporters of the measure “want to destroy that department.”.

As the votes moved toward passage. several members also complained about how narrowly the ordinance was written and what it could mean for the pipeline of new hires. The earlier version of the ordinance applied the ban on extremist activity to all city employees. but Martin said it was narrowed to avoid court challenges. Martin told colleagues that when it comes to police officers. courts have offered “more leeway” to prohibit extremist activity “because of the unique role they play in public safety.”.

That narrowing mattered to progressive advocates as well. Loren Jones. with the policy nonprofit Impact for Equity. said at a committee hearing last month that the earlier concern was tied to a political climate where designations could be applied too broadly. “We are concerned that in this political climate. designations like ‘anti-government extremists’ can be applied broadly. sweeping up those working tirelessly to protect our neighbors and our democracy. ” Jones said. But Jones also said the fact that “this ordinance applies only to the Chicago Police Department” lessens that worry.

The vote didn’t come without procedural friction. Ald. Chris Taliaferro. who chairs the Council’s police and fire committee. moved to delay the ordinance’s passage and re-refer it to his committee after expressing frustration that the measure had been heard only in the Council’s Workforce Development Committee.

Taken together. the night’s outcome landed with clear force: the Council decided the city will not rely on the police department’s internal system to investigate alleged extremist links in its ranks. and it chose a specific line—officers who participate in or maintain ties to extremist groups are now barred under municipal law.

Chicago City Council Chicago Police Department Proud Boys Oath Keepers Matt Martin Civilian Office of Police Accountability Deborah Witzburg Jan. 6 extremism in the ranks