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In 2017, Gov. Greg Abbott signed a law in place banning sanctuary cities in Texas.
SAN ANTONIO — As ICE operations pick up around the country, including in San Antonio, many people are questioning if the city is cooperating.
Last week, President Donald Trump signed an executive order threatening to take away federal funding from sanctuary cities or states that do not cooperate with federal immigration activities.
It had people questioning if San Antonio would be at risk of losing money. The answer is no. San Antonio is not a sanctuary city and has never been considered one.
In 2017, Governor Greg Abbott signed a law in place banning sanctuary cities in Texas.
“We do not have sanctuary cities,” UTSA Political Science Professor Jon Taylor said. “People may think we do, we don’t.”
Professor Taylor said in 2018, there was an argument San Antonio was a sanctuary city after Texas state leaders sued the city for not cooperating with federal authorities. The lawsuit was filed after 12 suspected undocumented immigrants were found in a trailer.
“But that was settled without any sort of omission of guilt,” Taylor said.
This week, the police chief has publicly stated his department is cooperating with ICE officers. According to the Washington Post, the field office in San Antonio for ICE has a goal to arrest 75 undocumented individuals a day.
ICE leaders have stated they are targeting people with a criminal background and who are dangers to society.
San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg told KENS 5 he believes the president’s executive orders around immigration are to strike fear within immigrant communities and communities of color. However, he insisted the city has always followed the law.
“We work with immigration authorities and federal law enforcement to remove dangerous, violent criminals,” Nirenburg said.
Professor Taylor said the reason many people assume San Antonino is a sanctuary city is because of the resources it provides for migrants who are seeking asylum. The Migrant Resource Center opened in July of 2022 and is run by Catholic Charities San Antonio.
“We can do two things at once, we can protect our community, uphold the law and we can also treat people with dignity and compassion, which San Antonio is known to do,” Nirenburg said.
The mayor pointed out that the amount of migrants coming through the migrant resource center is down after President Biden signed executive orders limiting the amount of people who can go through the asylum process.