HR0939ham001 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0939HAM001 LRB104 22108 MST 38535 a

AMENDMENT TO HOUSE RESOLUTION 939

AMENDMENT NO. ___. Amend House Resolution 939 by deleting everything after the heading and replacing it with the following:

"WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are proud to congratulate Laura Rodriguez, Gregory Pratt, and editor Erika Slife on receiving the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting for their courageous and impactful coverage of Operation Midway Blitz; and

WHEREAS, Through fearless investigative journalism and powerful storytelling published by the Chicago Tribune, Laura Rodriguez, Gregory Pratt, Adriana Perez, Kate Perez, Richie Requena, editor Erika Slife, and Tribune staff documented militarized immigration enforcement operations that traumatized immigrant families and communities across the Chicagoland area; and

WHEREAS, The Chicago Tribune's Operation Midway Blitz reporting exposed the fear, uncertainty, and harm experienced by working families while elevating the voices of residents, advocates, students, workers, and local communities who came together in resistance and solidarity; and

WHEREAS, The Pulitzer Prize Board recognized the Chicago Tribune's reporting "for its powerful coverage of the Trump administration's militarized immigration sweep of the city that described in vivid, muscular prose how the siege-like incursion of ICE agents unified Chicagoans in resistance"; and

WHEREAS, At a time when immigrant communities have too often been targeted, silenced, or dehumanized, the work of Laura Rodriguez, Gregory Pratt, and editor Erika Slife demonstrated the essential role journalism plays in protecting democracy, demanding accountability, and ensuring that the stories of impacted communities are not ignored; and

WHEREAS, The Chicago Tribune's coverage of Operation Midway Blitz helped bring national attention to the realities facing Latino and immigrant communities in Illinois and serves as an important historical record of a painful chapter that deeply affected families throughout the region; and

WHEREAS, A free and courageous press is fundamental to democracy and public accountability, especially when reporting on abuses of power and the lived experiences of vulnerable communities; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Laura Rodriguez, Gregory Pratt, and editor Erika Slife on receiving the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting, and we thank them for their commitment to truth, justice, accountability, and the people of Illinois; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be presented to Laura Rodriguez, Gregory Pratt, and Erika Slife as a symbol of our respect and appreciation."