Politics

/

ArcaMax

Somerville reaffirms sanctuary-city status; Massachusetts AG to fight Trump's deportation plan

Lance Reynolds, Boston Herald on

Published in Political News

The Somerville City Council has reaffirmed its commitment as a sanctuary city, while elected officials across Massachusetts continue to worry President-elect Donald Trump’s mass deportation plan will harm illegal immigrants who are not violent criminals.

Somerville is the latest Bay State sanctuary city to extend its support of that status, meaning it will continue to refuse to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement after Trump regains office in January.

Northampton and Amherst have already approved resolutions supporting their sanctuary designations in the wake of Trump’s reelection. At the same time, officials in Boston and Cambridge have vowed continued protection of immigrants.

Natick is looking to join the growing number of cities and towns with sanctuary provisions, including Concord, Lawrence and Newton.

“The City of Somerville has a proud, longstanding history of welcoming and supporting generations of immigrants,” reads the resolution that Somerville city councilors approved Tuesday night, “and has continually upheld values of equity, inclusion, and support for all community members.

“The national political climate remains increasingly hostile toward immigrants and refugees,” it adds, “and the recent return of the former President to the White House brings heightened risks for immigrant communities across the country.”

The resolution pledges that Somerville will continue to maintain a legal services stabilization fund that provides representation to residents facing deportation or removal.

It directs city departments, including police and schools, not to apply for or accept federal funds that require gathering or sharing information regarding national origin, immigration, or citizenship status for “the purpose of targeting or deportation.”

Somerville, of roughly 80,500 residents, 24% of whom were born outside of the country, has been a sanctuary city since 1987.

Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell told WGBH on Tuesday that she doesn’t see Trump’s administration rolling out its mass deportation plan on day one given the complexities and logistics required for such an effort.

“We’re prepared and ready to fight back on any plan to mass deport our people,” Campbell said on the Boston Public Radio show.

 

The AG said she fears that Trump’s plan, which the president-elect has said could include the use of the military, could lead to families being separated despite a vow from incoming border czar Tom Homan that “families can be deported together.”

“Our office, every single day, is out there fighting to protect the public safety of our residents and holding folks accountable if they commit crimes in Massachusetts,” Campbell said. “That’s whether they’re immigrants, those with no paperwork, or U.S. citizens.”

Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston arrested a 38-year-old Brazilian citizen charged with drug trafficking crimes in his home country last week in Somerville, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Councilor Jesse Clingan, speaking about the city’s sanctuary resolution earlier this month, recounted protecting immigrant residents during Trump’s previous presidency through what he called “back-channel activism.” The effort included providing alerts when ICE might have been in the area.

That prompted a warning from the director of the city’s Office of Immigrant Affairs to be “very careful with the strategies that we might want to share publicly.”

Gov. Maura Healey has pledged Massachusetts State Police won’t be used to assist in Trump’s mass deportation efforts, while the state’s top law enforcement agency has declared that kind of support goes against its mission.

When asked about that comment from the governor during an appearance Tuesday on Fox News, Massachusetts GOP Chairwoman Amy Carnevale slammed Healey, saying her and other leaders’ “actions say otherwise.”

“By putting into place a sanctuary city you are essentially putting out a beacon to criminal illegal immigrants to come into the Commonwealth of Massachusetts,” Carnevale said. “These cities and communities, they are offering protection.”

_____


©2024 MediaNews Group, Inc. Visit at bostonherald.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

 

Comments

blog comments powered by Disqus

 

Related Channels

ACLU

ACLU

By The ACLU
Amy Goodman

Amy Goodman

By Amy Goodman
Armstrong Williams

Armstrong Williams

By Armstrong Williams
Austin Bay

Austin Bay

By Austin Bay
Ben Shapiro

Ben Shapiro

By Ben Shapiro
Betsy McCaughey

Betsy McCaughey

By Betsy McCaughey
Bill Press

Bill Press

By Bill Press
Bonnie Jean Feldkamp

Bonnie Jean Feldkamp

By Bonnie Jean Feldkamp
Cal Thomas

Cal Thomas

By Cal Thomas
Christine Flowers

Christine Flowers

By Christine Flowers
Clarence Page

Clarence Page

By Clarence Page
Danny Tyree

Danny Tyree

By Danny Tyree
David Harsanyi

David Harsanyi

By David Harsanyi
Debra Saunders

Debra Saunders

By Debra Saunders
Dennis Prager

Dennis Prager

By Dennis Prager
Dick Polman

Dick Polman

By Dick Polman
Erick Erickson

Erick Erickson

By Erick Erickson
Froma Harrop

Froma Harrop

By Froma Harrop
Jacob Sullum

Jacob Sullum

By Jacob Sullum
Jamie Stiehm

Jamie Stiehm

By Jamie Stiehm
Jeff Robbins

Jeff Robbins

By Jeff Robbins
Jessica Johnson

Jessica Johnson

By Jessica Johnson
Jim Hightower

Jim Hightower

By Jim Hightower
Joe Conason

Joe Conason

By Joe Conason
Joe Guzzardi

Joe Guzzardi

By Joe Guzzardi
John Micek

John Micek

By John Micek
John Stossel

John Stossel

By John Stossel
Josh Hammer

Josh Hammer

By Josh Hammer
Judge Andrew Napolitano

Judge Andrew Napolitano

By Judge Andrew P. Napolitano
Laura Hollis

Laura Hollis

By Laura Hollis
Marc Munroe Dion

Marc Munroe Dion

By Marc Munroe Dion
Michael Barone

Michael Barone

By Michael Barone
Michael Reagan

Michael Reagan

By Michael Reagan
Mona Charen

Mona Charen

By Mona Charen
Oliver North and David L. Goetsch

Oliver North and David L. Goetsch

By Oliver North and David L. Goetsch
R. Emmett Tyrrell

R. Emmett Tyrrell

By R. Emmett Tyrrell
Rachel Marsden

Rachel Marsden

By Rachel Marsden
Rich Lowry

Rich Lowry

By Rich Lowry
Robert B. Reich

Robert B. Reich

By Robert B. Reich
Ruben Navarrett Jr

Ruben Navarrett Jr

By Ruben Navarrett Jr.
Ruth Marcus

Ruth Marcus

By Ruth Marcus
S.E. Cupp

S.E. Cupp

By S.E. Cupp
Salena Zito

Salena Zito

By Salena Zito
Star Parker

Star Parker

By Star Parker
Stephen Moore

Stephen Moore

By Stephen Moore
Susan Estrich

Susan Estrich

By Susan Estrich
Ted Rall

Ted Rall

By Ted Rall
Terence P. Jeffrey

Terence P. Jeffrey

By Terence P. Jeffrey
Tim Graham

Tim Graham

By Tim Graham
Tom Purcell

Tom Purcell

By Tom Purcell
Veronique de Rugy

Veronique de Rugy

By Veronique de Rugy
Victor Joecks

Victor Joecks

By Victor Joecks
Wayne Allyn Root

Wayne Allyn Root

By Wayne Allyn Root

Comics

Mike Luckovich Gary Varvel Gary McCoy Daryl Cagle Drew Sheneman Dick Wright