The Portland chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America is calling on partner organizations and members of the community to focus energy on Portland City Council, who has the power to take emergency action to protect those at risk from being targeted by Trump’s vicious immigration policies. The next city council meeting is Wednesday, June 27th.
On June 20th Portland DSA wrote an ‘Open Letter to Portland City Council’, which made several demands. Shortly afterwards Mayor Ted Wheeler announced via tweet that he was meeting one of our key demands, and would not use Portland Police to assist with any eviction of the ICE camp. While we appreciate this sentiment, we are concerned that the mayor will not keep his word, and further action is needed.
We are now asking city council to add agenda time to its Wednesday meeting to discuss all of the demands in the letter. The city must discuss the local response to this national crisis and take real action to protect our city from ICE and other agencies under Trump’s direct control.
We are asking the community to come to the city council meeting on Wednesday to demand that Portland withdraw from the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), of which ICE is a member. The city cannot work in cooperation with ICE while claiming to abhor its policies. Portland has withdrawn from the JTTF before and it can do it again, this Wednesday.
Furthermore, the city should announce that it will cease all cooperation with Trump’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Cynthia Nixon, candidate for Governor of New York, expressed the sentiment of millions when she referred to ICE, under DHS, as a terrorist organization. This is not an organization that our city should be ‘partners’ with, and this ‘partnership’ was one of the factors that led to the brutal treatment of anti-Trump protesters at last year’s now-infamous June 4th protest, where Portland Police worked with DHS in attacking anti-Trump protesters and later taking pictures of their identification.
Lastly, our letter demanded that the city follow through with the recommendations from the Sanctuary City Task Force, which recommended the establishment of an Office of Immigrants Rights, and fully funding legal defense services. Again, real resources are needed to protect vulnerable communities.
It’s now clear that the only thing currently keeping ICE from operating in Portland is the work of the occupiers, who are taking time away from their jobs and families to stand in solidarity with asylum seekers. We do not accept this as a permanent solution, and demand that city council fulfills its responsibility as the elected representatives of a Sanctuary City, and puts an end to ICE’s free reign over Portland.
We are calling on the community to attend the city council meeting on June 27th, where we expect the city council to discuss the above demands as well as other solutions brought forth from affected communities that will help keep protect this city from xenophobic, racist, and oppressive policies coming from our federal government. https://www.facebook.com/events/259763841443955/