Los Angeles city leaders on Tuesday introduced legislation to protect immigrant communities amid unrest due to President Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigrants.
Councilman Hugo Soto-Martinez introduced five proposals aimed at strengthening labor and immigration protections, which he said would address renewed threats of mass deportations, work-site raids and targeted enforcement actions, Fox Los Angeles reported.
“We are here today because, unfortunately, we have a president who wants to scapegoat and attack our immigrant neighbors,” Martinez said during a news conference outside City Hall alongside council members Eunisses Hernandez, Imelda Padilla and Ysabel Jurado and several immigrant rights, labor, legal and community groups. “And we are not going to take that lightly.
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“The legislation will make sure that we’re prepared and that we’re ready to fight back, which involves a comprehensive ‘know your rights’ campaign across the entire city so immigrants and employers understand their rights and don’t fall victim to ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) intimidation.”
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The legislation will be heard by the council’s Civil Rights & Immigration Committee before a vote.
If approved, it would reaffirm the city’s commitment to protecting its migrant community from possible deportation. In November, the council and Mayor Karen Bass formally established Los Angeles as a so-called sanctuary city.
The move by Soto-Martinez came after two days of protests during which demonstrators took over the 101 freeway and local streets to oppose Trump’s mass deportation plans of illegal immigrant criminals.
