In the midst of the ICE depredations on Anaheim’s immigrant community, the Anaheim Democrats Club (proudly “unchartered” from the DPOC) presents this urgent resolution to the Anaheim City Council tonight, based on what police forces in cities like Los Angeles and Huntington Park are already doing:
Whereas, Anaheim which has been designated a “Welcoming City” includes a population over half immigrant, which it values and on which it depends economically;
Whereas, as in other vibrant California cities, our current federal government has been sending agents to abduct, imprison and deport as much of our immigrant community as they can, with no end in sight;
Whereas, these ICE agents conceal their identities with masks, refuse to identify themselves, drive unmarked cars often without license plates, show no warrants, and answer no questions;
Whereas, sometimes these are agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorized to do this, and sometimes they are bounty hunters deputized by the government who receive $1000 to $1500 for each immigrant they capture and turn over;
Whereas there are now reports that these bounty hunters will sometimes hold their captives for ransom in a bid to see if relatives will pay more for their loved ones than the government;
Whereas, beyond these bounty hunters, there have been numerous reports across the nation for months that there are also freelance criminals who pose as ICE agents and abduct vulnerable people for even more nefarious purposes;
Whereas, given the recently passed Republican budget bill which triples funding for ICE enforcement, detentions and deportations, the situation is only going to continue to get worse for the foreseeable future;
Whereas Anaheim and its police are governed by the California Values Act SB 54, otherwise known as the Sanctuary State law, and are forbidden to assist the federal government in its depredations;
Whereas first Huntington Park and now Los Angeles have given their police direction similar to what is listed below;
Therefore, be it Resolved, that the Anaheim Democrats Club calls on the Anaheim City Council and its City Manager instruct the Chief of Police and his police force:
- To monitor any suspected or purported immigration enforcement activity in the City, to request a supervisor if one is not already present, to verify the credentials of the supervisor or federal agent in charge if the agents are not clearly identifiable, and to demand a warrant for the arrest(s) the agents plan to conduct;
- To capture the verification on body-worn camera to ensure transparency and accountability;
- To document and report all incidents where suspected federal enforcement activity involves questionable conduct, and refer possible civil rights violations to appropriate legal and oversight authorities;
- And to take appropriate enforcement action if they determine an individual is not a legitimate federal enforcement officer. Those actions may include detaining or arresting the individual for impersonating a peace officer.
The Anaheim Democrats Club would appreciate quick action on this emergency measure from the Council, City Manager and Chief of Police, as the matter is urgent. Thank you.
Did all the councilmembers vote to have Anaheim become a Welcoming City, even Republicans Natalie Meeks and Ryan Balius? Is it just another term for Sanctuary City?
It’s Sanctuary City-lite, originally a compromise between Dem Jose Moreno and Republican Tom Tait back during the first Trump term.
It was re-affirmed by the current council at the urging of some high school students. It’s mostly words but it makes people feel better, and in the context of our resolution it is worth holding them to their words.
You could read about the more recent “re-affirming” vote here https://voiceofoc.org/2025/04/anaheim-reaffirms-welcoming-city-stance-amidst-deportation-fears/
It sounds like Balius had a bit of a hard time with part of it. The article’s not clear if it was a unanimous vote or not, and I don’t have time to look that up. Almost everything they do is unanimous anymore.
Many of us in Anaheim are strongly against the city spending $250,000 on undocumented people, especially when we need more cops in our neighborhoods and not just at Disneyland. Seems the mayor can find time to develop a plan to help non-citizens, but what about a plan to hire more cops? At the budget workshop we learned we are now borrowing money to pay our bills because tourism is down. We are losing the perception battle that Anaheim is safe. I guess we are becoming more like Los Angeles every year, and that’s not a good thing.
Tourism is down. Because nobody wants to come to the US anymore. Not from Canada, not from Mexico, not from Europe, not from anywhere. I WONDER WHY, he said sarcastically.
I know you don’t like it but I think a legitamate use of denaturalization can be applied to the cases of Harry Melahat and Andrew . That’s my two cents.