For Immediate Release
Contact: bpacheco@nylag.org | c: 917.771.9845
(NEW YORK, NY) March 5, 2020: The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has deployed a 24/7 surveillance tactic around Sanctuary Cities—areas that limit its cooperation with federal immigration enforcement agents in order to protect immigrants from deportation, while still turning over those who commit serious crimes. The increased surveillance around Sanctuary Cities is another tactic in the Trump Administration’s anti-immigration agenda. The New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) Immigrant Protection unit’s Director Jodi Ziesemer, issued the following statement:
“ICE’s anticipated increased presence in Sanctuary Cities is a danger to our communities. We’ve already seen innocent bystanders harmed due to ICE’s increasingly violent and aggressive tactics. Just last month, a young man—who was not being targeted by ICE— was shot in the face during a raid. While ICE claims to protect the community, it instead sidesteps the law to actively target communities in furtherance of a politicized anti-immigrant agenda.”
About NYLAG
Founded in 1990, the New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) is a leading not-for-profit legal services organization advocating for adults, children, and families that are experiencing poverty or have low-income. We address emerging and urgent needs with comprehensive, free civil legal services, direct representation, impact litigation, policy advocacy, financial counseling, a medical-legal partnership model, and community education and partnerships.
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