Over six months after they were asked to join in on supporting the updated Values Act by the City of Long Beach, all requested auxiliary agencies have sent in letters saying they will stand behind immigrant protections, including an open lack of cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. Deputy City Manager Teresa Chandler has received those letters. This follows a memo released late last month by Long Beach Transit, which instructed employees to cooperate with federal immigration agents on worksites.
The followng entities have sent letters of support to the Harbor, Utilities, City Clerk, Police Oversight, Prosecutor, Auditor, Attorney, Legislative, Long Beach Transit, Convention & Entertainment Center, Long Beach Unified School District, and Long Beach City College.
Wait—what is the Long Beach Values Act and why was it updated?
Earlier this year, the city passed and supported a more bulked-up version of the 2017 Values Act. The legislation was initially created in direct response to then-President Donald Trump’s threats to strip funding from cities that refused to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. The vote also approved an additional $200,000 for the city’s free legal defense program for immigrants. And it strengthened rules preventing contractors from sharing city data with federal immigration agents. Long Beach followed the Los Angeles City Council, as well as the L.A. Unified School District, in codifying their protections for immigrants.
The main directive? A stern non-cooperation with ICE agents. An additional part included that “each independent office and several external partner agencies commit to the Values Act.” These entities include all those listed above.
What happened with Long Beach Transit?
Long Beach Transit employees were issued a directive on June 23 instructing them on what to do if federal immigration agents attempt to board a bus, enter corporate offices, or access employee-only areas.
“This policy didn’t come out of nowhere,” said Mike Clemson, former LBT board chair and current planning commissioner. “It’s part of Trump’s bigger strategy of using immigration agents to scare immigrant communities… Local agencies like LBT are now faced with a difficult choice. Either cooperate with policies that harm people or push back in a manner that could put employees at risk. That’s not a real choice. It’s a trap. This divides communities, creates confusion, and leaves public servants to face the consequences, whether they’re moral, or legal, or even physical.”
This is why their decision to support the Values Act is important—but now requires that employees will be trained on how to safely and assuredly refuse cooperation with federal immigration agents.
