False security

False+security

By The Advocate, Editorial Board

President Donald Trump signed 15 executive orders during his first week in office, but none is more deceptive than “Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States.”

On. Jan 25, the Trump administration issued an order that threatens to cut federal grants to public agencies who refuse to help U.S Immigrations and Customs Enforcement target undocumented immigrants who break the law — sanctuary jurisdictions.

The order claims creating a weekly log of crimes committed by undocumented immigrants will “better inform the public regarding public safety threats associated with sanctuary jurisdictions.”

But it is really a way for the Republican Party to maintain political dominance during state, local and federal elections by using fear.

People who support this executive order tend to argue that a multi-cultural nation is doomed to fail.

This executive order is particularly misleading because it uses “public safety” to justify plans to maintain Anglo-Christians as the dominant demographic in the United States.

Trump’s executive order, written by his chief strategist and a National Security Council member Steve Bannon, came 13 days after the Contra Costa Community District Governing Board granted sanctuary status for its students and employees at Diablo Valley College, Los Medanos College and Contra Costa College.

“What we saw last month was fear,” District Trustee Timothy J. Farley said at the Governing Board meeting on Jan. 12.

Dr. Farley referenced the dozens of students, professors and administrators who attended the Dec. 14, 2016 Governing Board meeting to urge the district to take preventative measures before Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration.

“I will do anything in my power to protect our students from fear and that is why I will support this ordinance before us tonight,” he said. “We cannot tolerate fear. Not from a foreign government and certainly not from our own.”

According to the document on  whitehouse.gov, this order issued aims to:

n Hire 10,000 additional immigration officers who are able to arrest, detain and interrogate any undocumented immigrant they consider to be violating the law.

n Create a program that would prosecute, detain and interrogate undocumented immigrants connected to criminal organizations.

n Reconstitute the immigration program that requires local and state jurisdictions to share information with U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to deport undocumented immigrants — Shared Communities (2008-2014).

Racial profiling could return to the surrounding communities of Richmond and San Pablo and negatively affect a large portion of the population CCC serves.

We must not succumb to fear and continue pressuring our local municipalities and the state to adopt progressive agendas.

And if Trump threatens to cut federal funding then we will continue to use statewide and local income tax initiatives to fund our school system.

But the last thing we can become is complacent — we must continue to resist.