Councilmembers Kendra Brooks and Rue Landau announce legislation to protect Philly from abuses by ICE

“Philadelphia has a responsibility to lead when the federal government refuses to act,” Landau added.

The two joined a number of local and state legislators at the announcement, including PA House Representatives Tarik Khan, Rick Krajewski, and Ben Waxman; state senators Nikil Saval and Sharif Street; and Councilmember Jamie Gauthier. Brooks also read a statement from Councilmember Quetzy Lozada. District Attorney Larry Krasner also spoke. Mayor Cherelle Parker was notably absent.

A crowd of a few hundred people gathered in temps well below freezing, with many streets still piled with snow from last weekend’s storm. Krasner noted that those who showed up for the rally stand in solidarity with activists in Minnesota, who are braving below-zero weather to march, and aid neighbors affected by ICE raids.

The ICE OUT legislation

The “ICE OUT” legislative package, slated be introduced in City Council on January 29, has been endorsed by more than 40 local organizations, including ACLU PA, the Pennsylvania Immigration Coalition, the National Domestic Workers Alliance, Reclaim Philadelphia, and many more.

According to Brooks and Landau, the proposed legislation would prohibit law enforcement agents, including ICE, from concealing their identities with masks or unmarked vehicles, and require officers to wear badges. It would codify existing policy to stop local police officers from acting as ICE agents and prohibit city agencies from collaborating with ICE, or sharing citizenship, immigration, or personal data. It would prohibit discrimination or denial of services based on citizenship or immigration status. It would stop ICE From using City-owned property as staging grounds for raids, and block City employees from giving ICE agents access to City-owned spaces (like libraries, shelters, medical offices, recreation centers) without a judicial warrant.

“A state of attack I never thought possible”

“Fear is not public safety. Trust is,” Landau said. Other speakers included Elena Emelchin Brunner, immigrant rights organizer with Asian Americans United. She described Asian community members, including those with legal asylum cases pending, being seized by ICE on the way to work or at courthouse check-ins.

“These families need to be able to sleep without worrying that the world will fall apart the next morning,” said María Serna of Make the Road Pennsylvania.

“We are witnessing a state of attack on our community that I never thought possible,” said Erika Guadalupe Nunez, the executive director of Juntos. Philadelphians “deserve to be free from state violence masquerading as public safety.”

Krasner speaks

When Krasner took the mic, he described abusive ICE agents as “a small bunch of wannabe Nazis” against a country of 350 million people. “We are the ones who believe in law and order. They are the ones who believe in crime and disorder.”

Krasner promised to protect Philadelphians’ constitutional rights to protest and to film officials in public. He also teased a partnership of state prosecutors nationwide dedicated to justice after “what appears to be two criminal homicides,” the shooting death by ICE agents of Renee Nicole Good on January 7, and Alex Pretti on January 24 in Minneapolis.

Promoting health and safety

Several themes emerged from the event, including the health impacts of ICE surges. When people are afraid to go to the doctor, for fear of being seized by government agents, their medical problems worsen, Lozada noted.

“This goes beyond fear. It is a crisis of mental health,” Serna added of the deep effects of constant terror in the streets and at home.

Many speakers pointed out that a climate of fear and violent force harm public safety, and they noted that threats against some will eventually come for all. They also mourned local victims of ICE detentions, including Cambodian immigrant Parady La in Upper Darby, who was seized by ICE agents on his way to the store, and died the next day in Center City’s Federal Detention Center.

ICE OUT on the march

After the rally, attendees marched east to US Senator John Fetterman’s Philly office at Second and Chestnut, where speeches from organizers continued, urging Fetterman to join Democrats in the Senate on the current DHS budget fight.

Philadelphians who support the “ICE OUT” legislation can call or write their councilmembers. “We must act now,” Landau said.

For other local actions, see our January 23 story on a recent No ICE Philly meetup.