Two conferences this week, one in New York City and another in San Francisco, are gathering officials from around the country to talk about protecting illegal immigrants in their communities from deportation, Politico reported.
At a two-day conference being held in in Manhattan for some 40 elected officials, organized by immigration reform advocate and New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, the aim is to create a network of cities opposed to President Donald Trump's immigration policies.
In a separate gathering in San Francisco, a coalition of 150 mayors is pushing for federal immigration reform, Politico reported. Attending that meeting will be 25 senior government officials from 19 cities, Politico reported.
"For people that are anti-immigrant, sanctuary cities are places where anyone can come and commit a crime and there is no law and order, and we know that is fiction," Betsy Plum, director of special projects at the New York Immigration Coalition, told Politico.
"At the same time, sanctuary cities are not places where we can stop the federal government from entering and using information they have access to. We can limit, but we are never going to be able to stop them."
In New York City, elected officials are facing an increasing demand from advocates, and the city's illegal immigrant community, for the city to do more to limit their interaction with Immigration and Customs Enforcement — and fund efforts to protect illegals, Politico reported.
In Los Angeles, for example, Mayor Eric Garcetti last month signed an executive order barring law enforcement who patrol the city's port and airport from inquiring about a suspect's immigration status, expanding a policy enforced by city police since 1979, Politico reported.
But in other places around the country, local governments have rolled back some sanctuary protections and voiced a willingness to cooperate with federal law enforcement rather than risk losing funds; a Florida bill to crack down on sanctuary cities was approved last week by a legislative committee, Politico reported.
"Every single day there is less and less support for this administration and their policies which are making us less safe and people realize that," Mark-Viverito told Politico.
"They are racist and stereotyping our communities and people really want to push back in whatever way they can, so cities are trying to figure out how they can fill that space."
Other mayors in California who preside over declared sanctuary cities — including Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguín, San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee, San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo and Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf — insist they'll stand together in regional efforts to cushion the blow of any punishment from the Trump administration.
Hoover Institution research fellow Jeremy Carl, who has advised GOP governors on key policy issues, warns such efforts are like "waving a red flag in front of a bull."
"The main thing it will accomplish is making Trump's policies on sanctuary cities more popular than they might be, while boxing in California legally," he told Politico. "If their position on California is that they will stand in the schoolhouse door and defy federal law, it's not going to play well for them."