Bridgeport Mayor Declares ‘Make Fairfield A Sanctuary City!’ in Protest

FAIRFIELD, CT — The debate over sanctuary cities in the wake of President Donald Trump’s immigration ban by executive order reached Fairfield this week and came from an unlikely source.

Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim responded to a protest that featured 100-plus people at City Hall during the City Council meeting on Monday with a counter-protest at the Fairfield Metro Train Station — and on social media — on Tuesday, according to the Connecticut Post.

“If we care about the most vulnerable, suburbans must help, not criticize us for not doing enough #Solidarity #SanctuaryCities #FairfieldCT,” Ganim posted on Twitter, along with photos of him holding a sign at the train station that read “Make Fairfield A Sanctuary City!”

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Ganim, a Democrat, was joined by three other city council members at the train station, according to the Post.

In one of the photos on Twitter, Ganim was holding an issue of the Connecticut Post that featured a photo of Ann McCarthy, a Fairfield resident, on the front page holding a sign that read “Make Bridgeport A Sanctuary City!” from Monday night’s protest outside Bridgeport City Hall.

That photo apparently inspired Ganim to hold his counter-protest in Fairfield.

McCarthy told the Post that while she is a Fairfield resident, she works in Bridgeport as the Director of Development and Communications for the Child and Family Guidance Center, which provides mental health support to children and families in Bridgeport and the majority of the clients are poor and from minority groups.

Fairfield First Selectman Mike Tetreau, also a Democrat, told the Post that Ganim hasn’t asked for his support on immigration matters but if he had any questions on what’s going on in Fairfield (on any topic) he would take his call, while adding that he doesn’t follow Ganim on Twitter.

Read more at the Connecticut Post here.

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