Baltimore Remains A Welcoming City: Mayor To Immigrants

BALTIMORE — As Baltimore braces for potential immigration raids, Mayor Jack Young issued a statement directing residents to resources and offering his support for all Baltimoreans. Raids are reportedly expected to take place this weekend in Baltimore, Chicago, Atlanta, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York and San Francisco. They come weeks after President Donald Trump said he was delaying large-scale Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids across the nation.

"The attempts of the President and his administration to deprive immigrants of their rights and to tear apart families are unacceptable, and I will continue to welcome immigrants to Baltimore with open arms and serve our newest Americans in the same way I serve every Baltimorean," Young said in a statement on Friday, July 12.

Trump confirmed to reporters at the White House that ICE would be conducting a sweep this weekend to pick up people who had outstanding deportation orders.

"It's a major operation," Trump said, according to ABC News. He said the agents would be "focused on criminals...before we do anything else" and said undocumented immigrants would be returned to their countries or jailed.

"Should any of our immigrant residents be impacted by the threatened ICE raids in the coming days, which I genuinely hope is not the case, I would encourage them to access the resources available through Safe City Baltimore, a public immigration defense fund that provides immigrants with a continuum of legal assistance," Young said. "Safe City Baltimore also provides eligible Baltimore City residents who are detained by ICE with access to a lawyer and the opportunity to tell their story before an immigration judge. Access to quality legal counsel protects immigrants' right to due process and has the tremendous power to keep families together."

Initially, Trump announced the raids with a June 17 Twitter post, saying authorities would start removing "millions of illegal aliens." But days later he said that the operation had been delayed to give Congress a chance to address problems at the southern U.S. border.

"Immigrants who call Baltimore home should not live in fear of family separation and deportation, and I will continue to do all that is in my power so that all Baltimore residents, including immigrants, feel safe and welcome in our city," Young said.

"Baltimore remains a Welcoming City, and being welcoming means ensuring that everyone can rely on and trust in their local institutions," he said. "To further that trust, I, alongside Police Commissioner Harrison, recently announced a new police policy (Policy 1021: Immigration Status) that puts in writing what has been the practice of the Baltimore Police Department for several years: Baltimore Police officers will not ask anyone about immigration status and will not do the work of ICE by enforcing administrative warrants of removal. Every Baltimore resident is safer when our immigrant neighbors report crimes and work with police, and this new policy is another step toward greater trust and collaboration with our immigrant communities."

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