Sanctuary City Declaration In Michigan Capital City Defies Trump

LANSING, MI — Officials in Michigan’s capital city sent a strong message to President Trump Monday, declaring itself a sanctuary city that offers protection to undocumented immigrants who fear deportation under Trump’s hard-line immigration policies. The resolution, passed unanimously by the Lansing City Council, is risky, putting millions of dollars in federal funding in jeopardy.

Under Trump’s January executive order. sanctuary states and cities that harbor undocumented immigrants would be stripped of federal grant money. The order directed the Office of Management and Budget to compile a list of federal grant money sanctuary jurisdictions receive.

The resolution hadn’t been expected to pass, but a couple of hours before the meeting, Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero issued an executive order that swayed undecided city council members. Bernero said the city will still comply with state and federal law, but his executive order outlines protocol for the Lansing Police Department that helps them avoid becoming de facto immigration agents, the Lansing State Journal reported.

The Lansing executive order prohibits police officers from stopping, arresting, or interrogating individuals based on their immigration status, Michigan Radio reported. It prohibits police officers from asking about the immigration status of people who are victims or witnesses to a crime, and requires that all individuals, regardless of citizenship status, be subject to the same booking, processing, release, and transfer procedures, policies, and practices of the police department.

The executive order doesn’t specifically mention “sanctuary city,” though the resolution approved by the city council “declares the City of Lansing a sanctuary city.”

Bernero thinks the language in his executive order is sufficient to overcome any objections or challenges by the Trump administration, but does not rule out a legal fight if necessary and strongly condemns administration immigration policies.

“We are confident these new policies do not violate federal law, but we are also prepared to take legal action to protect the prerogatives and powers of local government and local law enforcement,” Bernero said in a statement. “We do not want our local police to become de facto immigration agents — especially under the divisive and draconian direction of the Trump administration.”

Trump’s executive order specifically cites Section 1373 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which says that any government or entity “may not prohibit, or in any way restrict, any government entity or official from sending to, or receiving from, the Immigration and Naturalization Service information regarding the citizenship or immigration status, lawful or unlawful, of any individual.”

Congressman Mike Bishop, a Rochester Republican whose 8th District includes Lansing, called the sanctuary city vote “a completely reckless decision” that jeopardizes federal funding the entire Lansing community relies on “simply to make a politically charged statement,” the Lansing State Journal reported.

“It’s the role of the federal government to form immigration policy, not local municipalities,” Bishop said an emailed statement to the newspaper. “We are a nation that is built on the rule of law and this sends a dangerous message that local governments or individuals can simply pick and choose which laws they wish to follow.”

You can read the mayor’s executive order below.

Feature photo by John Moore / Staff / Getty Images News / Getty Images