SF Ups the Ante on Sanctuary City Status

SF Ups the Ante on Sanctuary City Status

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) – San Francisco launched a public education campaign Wednesday aimed at placating the fears of illegal immigrants following a series of federal raids.

Mayor Gavin Newsom took the city’s longstanding sanctuary status to the next level when he announced that city employees won’t report illegal immigrants to federal authorities.

City administrator Ed Lee said the $83,000 campaign is meant to reinforce the point that San Francisco is a sanctuary city.

“We are publicizing our sanctuary status to encourage people to participate and engage themselves with city government, not to hide in fear,â€

S.F. promotes services for illegal immigrants
Cecilia M. Vega, Chronicle Staff Writer

Thursday, April 3, 2008

A series of new television and radio commercials, billboards and bus shelter signs will soon go up around San Francisco advertising the fact that the city by the bay is also a sanctuary city for illegal immigrants.

City officials on Wednesday unveiled the $83,000 ad campaign, which features images of smiling residents and the iconic city skyline and spreads the message in English, Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese and Russian. Brochures, which will be handed out in public buildings like police stations and hospitals, promise safe access to city services for the undocumented and a don't-ask-don't-tell policy when it comes residency status.

"We are standing up to say to all of our residents: We don't care what your status is," Mayor Gavin Newsom said. "We care that you, as a human being, are a resident of our city and we want you to participate in the life of our city."

Officials said the public awareness campaign was prompted in part by a series of federal immigration raids around the region last year that left undocumented immigrants hesitant to come forward to seek medical treatment or report crimes, out of fear they might be deported.

But the campaign precedes the city's plan in August to begin issuing municipal identification cards to city residents - regardless of whether they are in the country legally. Officials said they not only want immigrants to know about San Francisco's sanctuary city policy, they want city workers, business owners and others to know the same.

"We're taking a big bite of the reality sandwich in admitting that there are people who live here who may or may not have citizen status," said Supervisor Tom Ammiano, who helped spearhead the ad campaign and who represents the city's heavily Latino Mission District.

Police Chief Heather Fong said officers will report undocumented immigrants if they have a felony arrest, but otherwise, "we do not work on enforcing immigration laws."

San Francisco became a sanctuary city in 1989 and since then it has barred city employees from helping Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents with immigration investigations or arrests, unless help is required by a federal or state law or a warrant.

It is the city's formal policy to not report illegal immigrants to federal immigration agents when they visit public health clinics or hospitals, enroll their children in school, report a crime to the police or seek other city services or apply for benefits.

And while a number of cities around the country also call themselves sanctuary cities, including San Jose and Oakland, Houston, Seattle, Chicago and Miami, few - if any - have embarked on a widespread campaign to advertise the fact.

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani adamantly denied that New York is a sanctuary city after he came under fire over the issue last year during his bid for the Republican presidential nomination.

"San Francisco clearly is going a step beyond most places in boasting (about) and advertising this. Most cities kind of almost apologize to their voters when they complain about it," said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, a Washington think tank that supports restrictions on immigration.

Krikorian said San Francisco and other sanctuary cities are "openly subverting the federal government's ability to protect the borders" by extending protections to undocumented immigrants.

"They're making it as easy as they can for illegal immigrants to live in San Francisco," he said.

Newsom, a Democrat who is considering running for California governor in 2010, made headlines last year when he said he would not allow city department heads or "anyone associated with this city" to cooperate in federal immigration raids. Wednesday he said no other issue he has championed has received a more negative reaction from the public than his sanctuary city stance - "and that includes gay marriage."

"Until we get it right in this country on immigration, until we come to grips with the reality of newcomers from around the world ... then it is appropriate to protect our citizens, to protect our residents and to protect our families," Newsom said.

Newsom made the announcement in his City Hall office, alongside a coalition of high-profile city leaders, from the police and fire chiefs to city department heads and representatives from churches and community groups.

The city recently created a position for an "immigrants rights administrator" to work with city agencies so that employees understand the sanctuary city policy and how to better serve immigrant communities.

City Administrator Ed Lee called San Francisco's new sanctuary city ad campaign "not only the liberal thing to do, it's the responsible thing."

E-mail Cecilia M. Vega at cvega@sfchronicle.com.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.c ... NVUM70.DTL

This is such bull, and I only pray illegals will take them up on the offer and put the city in fiscal crisis. Gov. Arnold already said illegals are not to blame for the states' financial problems. I can picture the faces of all these half retarded elected officials when bands of illegals are ethnically cleansing Americans from what they have already said was their land.

I wouldn't let the history books write that I encouraged and abetted the destruction of America...

Has anyone considered filing a lawsuit based upon maintaining a hazard? From what I understand the US State Department does consider illegal aliens to be a danger. You may have seen State Department warning about travel to certain other countries. In a similar way they issue warnings about various types of illegal immigration as a danger to US citizens. By example, here is a warning about Chinese alien smuggling:
http://usinfo.state.gov/eap/east_asia_p ... gling.html

I've been searching the State Department's website and archives for other warnings on illegal aliens. Although this is an administrative action it could be used to back up a complaint based upon a federal act. For example, does maintaining a hiring hall which illegals frequent constitute a significant hazard to a neighborhood? Maybe that would be grounds for a tort.

One other thing I have wanted to mention. Even if you couldn't find a lawyer to take a case, the limits in small claims court have risen considerably in the past few years. Limits of $5000 are not uncommon. I think some states even go as high as $12,500. If you are sure of your facts and the of law in question this might be a route to, as the lawyers say, "send a message." In our state a defendant would have to give you notice if they were intending to hire a lawyer to defend your claim against them.

We don't need to do anything, folks. In one year's time, SF will be a cesspool of crime, disease, AND BROKE. THEN the native legal San Franciscans will wake up and raise hell.

It's just a matter of time. You'll see.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ex_OC

We don't need to do anything, folks. In one year's time, SF will be a cesspool of crime, disease, AND BROKE. THEN the native legal San Franciscans will wake up and raise hell.

It's just a matter of time. You'll see.

---

I wonder how many legal SFers even know that illegal aliens DO drain the community's tax dollars. Maybe they think the illegals pay taxes and follow all other laws? When they realize the damage, SF will be way beyond broke.

Added to Homepage:
http://www.alipac.us/article-3077--0-0.html

Quote:

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We don't need to do anything, folks. In one year's time, SF will be a cesspool of crime, disease, AND BROKE. THEN the native legal San Franciscans will wake up and raise hell.

It's just a matter of time. You'll see.

---

Really? I live in one of SF's "sister cities" (don't know if it is b. g. l. tg. or ts or whatever) and it takes liberals a very long time to wake up. Apparently they dozed off in Civics class about thirty years ago, and still haven't emerged from the Purple Haze. Besides SF'ers are so rich they probably just use IA philanthropy as another tax deduction.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Captainron

Quote:

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We don't need to do anything, folks. In one year's time, SF will be a cesspool of crime, disease, AND BROKE. THEN the native legal San Franciscans will wake up and raise hell.

It's just a matter of time. You'll see.

---

Really? I live in one of SF's "sister cities" (don't know if it is b. g. l. tg. or ts or whatever) and it takes liberals a very long time to wake up. Apparently they dozed off in Civics class about thirty years ago, and still haven't emerged from the Purple Haze. Besides SF'ers are so rich they probably just use IA philanthropy as another tax deduction.

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Thanks, Captain. It's just like I also said in another thread: CA is lost. Too many liberals and not much morals. From San Diego to San Francisco -- it's all lost. That's why I fled from Orange County. California is now Mexifornia. Sad, sad, sad.

TRUST ME. SAN FRANCISCANS ARE AWAKE ON THIS AND VERY UPSET ABOUT IT. I DONT KNOW ONE PERSON HERE WHO IS IN FAVOR OF THIS CITY BEING A SANCTUARY CITY. NEWSOM WILL HAVE TO BACK DOWN EVENTUALLY BECAUSE ICE HAS SAID THEY WILL ENFORCE THE IMMIGRATION LAWS IN THIS CITY REGARDLESS OF ANY CLAIM BY THE LEADERS OF THIS CITY THAT IT IS A SANCTUARY CITY. I HOPE ICE DOES NOT TAKE TOO MUCH TIME TO DO THIS.

City Hall, Room 200
1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place
San Francisco, CA 94102

Telephone: (415) 554-6141
Fax: (415) 554-6160
Email: gavin.newsom@sfgov.org

http://www.sfgov.org/site/mayor_index.asp


Mayor Newsom Launches Sanctuary City Outreach Campaign
http://www.sfgov.org/site/mayor_index.asp?id=78378

Well, I hope Mayor Gavin Newsom is representing the will of his constituients on this because I have a strong suspicion that many will no longer feel so hospitable when, surrounding their million plus dollar communites, there is nothing but third-world barrios ; all at the express invitation of their fearless leader.

Lets see how accomodating they are then! And don't tell me it cannot happen because it's happened to me personally!

Redpony, I hope you are right! Let ICE come in a clean up! Would love to deport Gavin Newsom along with all the other law breakers!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by redpony353

TRUST ME. SAN FRANCISCANS ARE AWAKE ON THIS AND VERY UPSET ABOUT IT. I DONT KNOW ONE PERSON HERE WHO IS IN FAVOR OF THIS CITY BEING A SANCTUARY CITY. NEWSOM WILL HAVE TO BACK DOWN EVENTUALLY BECAUSE ICE HAS SAID THEY WILL ENFORCE THE IMMIGRATION LAWS IN THIS CITY REGARDLESS OF ANY CLAIM BY THE LEADERS OF THIS CITY THAT IT IS A SANCTUARY CITY. I HOPE ICE DOES NOT TAKE TOO MUCH TIME TO DO THIS.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ex_OC

We don't need to do anything, folks. In one year's time, SF will be a cesspool of crime, disease, AND BROKE. THEN the native legal San Franciscans will wake up and raise hell.

It's just a matter of time. You'll see.

---

I totally agree! But still the City leaders who support this should be prosecuted for aiding and abetting in my opinion.

Newsom's embrace of illegal immigrants is a PR ploy

Thursday, April 3, 2008

Editor - Regarding "City making clear illegals can obtain services here" (April 3): Mayor Gavin Newsom's latest ploy to position himself for a future gubernatorial or senatorial nomination is another transparent photo-op maneuver designed to appeal to Latino voters.

He's spending city tax money to publicize a program which openly violates federal law - the purpose of which has nothing whatever to do with human rights and everything to do with personal ambition. Newson has shamelessly used the mayor's office as a platform to further his career, staging a series of PR events to showcase his agenda.

He isn't worried about the costs and damage illegals cause the city, that's just a minor inconvenience on the road to his glittering political future.

CURTIS FAVILLE

Kensington


Abetting criminals
Editor - Am I the only one who thinks Mayor Gavin Newsom's latest announcement regarding services to illegal residents is just plain wrong?

His actions aid and abet the criminal activity of certain San Francisco residents.

At the federal level, we are spending millions of dollars to erect a fence to secure our borders against terrorists and illegal immigrants. Yet Mayor Newsom is spending $83,000 to advertise that San Francisco is willing to further spend taxpayer dollars by providing city services to illegal residents.

And this follows, by two days, his announcement that the city is eliminating nearly 300 paid positions as a necessary cost-cutting measure.

I have already filed an official complaint at the federal level about Newsom's abuse of power. Today I will also do so at the local and state levels.

JIM RADETICH

San Rafael


Give us bread and butter
Editor - Oh, I feel safer already. San Francisco is spending more than $80,000 on an ad campaign so the world will know we are an immigrant sanctuary city (they already know, by the way) and the Board of Supervisors has taken a momentous and life-changing step to condemn China. Don't get me wrong - I agree with both principles and will probably be among the April 9th demonstrators, but where is the same energy devoted to bread-and-butter issues that actually affect us as residents? Crime is still increasing; the city is still filthy; Muni is still not on time but manages to hit and kill people.

I laugh whenever I think that Mayor Gavin Newsom has aspirations to the State Capitol. It must be nice to live in a dream world. Unfortunately, the rest of us must face reality.

SHERRIE MATZA San Francisco


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