L.A. Councilmember: We’re Trying to Ensure ‘Stability’ with Sanctuary Law, Not Getting Into Broader Immigration Policy

During an interview with CBS News Los Angeles on Wednesday, Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman said the city’s adoption of a sanctuary city measure is not them getting “involved in federal immigration enforcement or border policy, what we want to do is ensure that Angelinos can go about their daily work, can go about their day, can take care of their children, and this is our intervention in that effort, not a discussion about broader immigration policy, but really what do we to ensure that Los Angeles and Angelinos have the stability that they need to continue to live and work and thrive here.”

Raman began by saying that the sanctuary city vote “was not a radical shift from what the city has always been doing” because the LAPD hasn’t cooperated with federal immigration enforcement for decades.

She added, “We’re really trying to keep residents safe. We are not involved in federal immigration enforcement or border policy, what we want to do is ensure that Angelinos can go about their daily work, can go about their day, can take care of their children, and this is our intervention in that effort, not a discussion about broader immigration policy, but really what do we to ensure that Los Angeles and Angelinos have the stability that they need to continue to live and work and thrive here. When this was being discussed in council, one of the councilmembers brought up that, during the last Trump administration, ICE vans were parked outside of schools, prompting fears from parents that, if they dropped their children off, that they would be rounded up. That is not the kind of city that I think any Angelino wants.”

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