Cathedral City Votes to Be Recognized as a “Sanctuary City”
At the May 24, 2017 City Council meeting, the council voted 3 to 2 in favor of recognizing current City immigration policies and officially declaring Cathedral City as a place where all families can live without the fear of local law enforcement seeking their immigration or citizenship status.
The three main points that the Council would like everyone to know about being classified as a “Sanctuary City” are the following:
1. Improves Public Safety for Everyone.
Families residing in Cathedral City may have a member(s) of their household that arrived undocumented for a variety of reasons. It could be a spouse, child, parent or grandparent. Our Police and Fire Departments need every person in our community to feel free to contact an officer or call 9-1-1 if they witness a reportable crime being committed or a medical emergency without the fear of being detained solely due to their immigration status. This policy fosters a relationship of trust, respect, and open communication between City officials and residents and is essential to the City’s mission of delivering efficient public services in partnership with our community.
2. Immigration is the role of the federal government, not local government.
It is the position of the City of Cathedral City that the responsibility for the enforcement of immigration belongs to the federal government. It is up to each locale to enter an agreement (known as 287g) with the federal government to take on that enforcement role. Cathedral City, through its designation as a “Sanctuary City” has chosen not to enter such agreement and to not expend local resources on such activity.
3. Protects Sensitive Information.
Our policy prohibits City personnel from seeking a person’s immigration status for that sole purpose. We treat all individuals equally in enforcing and preventing crime. We don’t ask for a person’s immigration status and we do not detain a person merely based on their immigration status. We want all individuals to engage in commerce, utilize public venues, and interact with City employees without the fear of being asked for their immigration status.
Everyone has the right to agree or disagree with the decision made by the majority of the council as that is what makes us a modern democracy. At the same time, families originating from all over the world who come to United States to seek the American Dream should be able to shop, dine, live, stay, and play without the fear of their status being questioned by City law enforcement. It is the City’s resolution that declares immigration is not the role of local government. On the other hand, residents should be assured that our police department will continue to aggressively fight crime in our community and comply with lawfully issued judicial warrants or other subpoenas and cooperate with federal authorities to protect public safety.
This Sanctuary City status attempts to send a message of inclusivity to our residents, recognize the role of local government, and continue the practices that were in place for many years to keep our community safe.
En Espanol:
Los tres puntos principales que el Consejo desea que todos sepan sobre ser clasificados como “Ciudad Santuario” son los siguientes:
1. Mejora la seguridad pública para todos.
Algunas familias que residen en la ciudad de Cathedral City podrían tener miembros que están indocumentados por varias de razones. Podría ser una pareja, un hijo, padre o abuelo. Nuestro departamento de Policía y Bomberos necesitan que cada persona de nuestra comunidad se sienta seguro de comunicarse con un oficial o llamar al 9-1-1 si para emergencias médicas o si son testigos de un delito que se debe reportar, sin temor de ser detenidos por su estatus migratorio. Esta póliza fomenta una relación de confianza, respeto y buena comunicación entre los oficiales de la Ciudad y los residentes. Es esencial para la misión de la Ciudad proveer servicios públicos eficientes en colaboración con nuestra comunidad.
2. La inmigración es responsabilidad del gobierno federal, no del gobierno local.
La posición de la ciudad de la ciudad respecto a este tema, es que las responsabilidades de las políticas migratorias pertenezcan al gobierno federal. Corresponde a cada localidad tener un acuerdo (conocido como 287g) con el gobierno federal para asumir ese papel de cumplimiento. La ciudad de Cathedral, a través de su designación como una “Ciudad Santuario” ha decidido no entrar en tal acuerdo y no gastar recursos locales en tal actividad.
3. Protege la información sensible.
Nuestra póliza de Santuario prohíbe que el personal de la Ciudad investigue el estatus migratorio de una persona. Tratamos a todos los individuos por igual para hacer cumplir y prevenir la delincuencia. No pedimos el estatus migratorio de una persona y no detenemos a una persona basándonos simplemente en su estatus migratorio. Queremos que todos los individuos se involucren en el comercio, utilicen lugares públicos e interactúen con los empleados de la Ciudad sin el temor de que se les solicite su estatus migratorio.
For more information, go to: http://www.cathedralcity.gov/government/sanctuary-city
