This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: As we continue to look at local resistance nationwide against Trump’s crackdown, we go to Philadelphia, where a group of at least 15 city councilmembers have backed a package of seven bills aimed at combating federal immigration enforcement operations in Philadelphia, including codifying the city’s sanctuary protections. The bill would also prohibit federal immigration agents from concealing their identities, covering their faces or using unmarked cars. It also requires judge-signed warrants and prohibits city workers from cooperating with ICE. The efforts are being led by Philadelphia City Councilmembers Kendra Brooks, who will join us in a minute, and Rue Landau. They co-authored the legislation package. All but two of the city’s 17 councilmembers have co-sponsored the ”ICE Out” package, indicating the legislation may have a veto-proof majority.
In response to the legislation being introduced, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker made one of her first public statements about Trump’s immigration raid, saying on social media, quote, “We are aware of the potential challenges that we face, and we understand the public’s fear of the unknown, as it relates to federal policy associated with immigration,” unquote.
Meanwhile, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner has launched a national coalition of prosecutors that would hold federal immigration agents accountable if they’re found to have violated state or local laws and civil rights protections. The coalition includes prosecutors in Virginia, Arizona and Texas. Last week, DA Krasner issued this warning to federal immigration agents.
LARRY KRASNER: This is a small bunch of wannabe Nazis. That’s what they are. In a country of 350 million, we outnumber them. … I, along with a bunch of other state prosecutors, are rallying around Mary Moriarty, who is the prosecutor in Minneapolis. I know for a fact she is working 24/7 to make sure that there is justice coming out of two, what appear to be, by all indications, criminal homicides, and what appears to be, by all indications, a criminal shooting of someone in the leg. I want — I want you to understand that just as you have come together, there are state prosecutors coming together right now to make sure that people understand there will be accountability. There will be accountability now. There will be accountability in the future. There will be accountability after Trump is out of office. If we have to hunt you down the way they hunted down Nazis for decades, we will find your identities. We will find you. We will achieve justice. And we will do so under the Constitution and the laws of the United States.
AMY GOODMAN: That was Philadelphia DA Larry Krasner.
For more, we’re joined in Philadelphia by City Councilmember Kendra Brooks, sponsor of the ICE Out legislative package that’s being voted on by the Philadelphia City Council. Powerful words by the DA. Can you explain exactly what’s at the heart of your legislation and how it can be enforced, if in fact you and Rue Landau, the two of you sponsoring this legislation, get it passed?
KENDRA BROOKS: Well, we — thank you so much for having me, to start.
Councilmember Landau and I worked very closely with DA Larry Krasner and our sheriff’s department to make sure this legislation will be able to be enforced once we move it forward. Part of it was just making sure our community members felt safe. As a community organizer myself, we heard the cries from the community calling for something to be done. So, we started out with a series of community trainings around how to protect yourself against ICE. And over the last couple of months, we’ve been crafting out this legislation with both local and national legislators and attorneys to make sure that this is something that we can actually implement here in the city of Philadelphia.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: And, Councilwoman, how would these — this package actually work? Are you seeking to get criminal liability or civil liability by Philadelphians against ICE abuses?
KENDRA BROOKS: I think the determination on exactly how it will work will be up to the prosecutor, which will be the DA’s Office, to determine exactly how that works. But for us, the goal was to get something on the books to codify our existing executive orders, to make sure that community members felt safe and that something was actually being done to protect, you know, our citizens here in Philadelphia, whether it’s the number of folks who have experienced ICE agents being [masked] and in unmarked cars coming to the criminal justice center or to schools or to places of employment, or whether it was making sure that we’re not participating and sharing data with ICE agents, and also making sure that they’re unable to stage raids and attacks on our community in our public spaces, i.e. schools, recreation centers or any places owned by the city. So, our goal was to make sure that something is in place to prevent any undue harm and to work with existing law enforcement to make sure that we can do something to protect our citizens.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: And what about conditions in detention centers in Philadelphia? There was a death of a Cambodian American, Parady La, on January 9th. He was found unresponsive in a Philadelphia detention center and rushed to a hospital. What can the Philly city government do to regulate conditions inside a federal jail?
KENDRA BROOKS: I think, well, from my understanding, we have been looking into the — we heard it was two deaths in detention centers here in Pennsylvania, but they aren’t actually in Philadelphia. We are working with legislators across the commonwealth to have this discussion, and we have a couple bills that are happening in our state House, as well, around regulations around ICE and detention centers. But we’ll see what happens moving forward. We’ve been working very closely with a lot of our immigrant justice organizations in the city and across the commonwealth, and hopefully we’ll see something come out of that soon.
AMY GOODMAN: The Pennsylvania governor, Josh Shapiro, has sued the Trump administration 19 times and successfully stopped the unlawful deployment of the National Guard. As we begin to wrap up, can you talk about the significance of this support from the state government, and also perhaps what you want to see more of, and the timing of your ICE Out legislation, when it’s going to be voted on?
KENDRA BROOKS: I think it’s good to see the state of Pennsylvania fighting back against the Trump administration, especially when it comes to our citizens, whether it’s the multiple cases that the governor has brought against, whether it’s the removing of our slave monument down at — on Market Street, or us implementing this ICE legislation. I think, collectively, as a commonwealth, we can work together to protect our citizens across the board.
And also, with our ICE Out legislation, we are waiting for it to get put into committee. It should take about four to six, maybe eight weeks before we can get a committee hearing, or maybe sooner. And our goal is just to move this as fast as possible, to make sure that, you know, we’re doing all that we can to keep Philadelphians safe, and continue to work with our state and federal legislatures to make sure that Pennsylvania is a welcoming place for our immigrant neighbors.
AMY GOODMAN: Well, I want to thank you very much for being with us, Philadelphia City Councilmember Kendra Brooks, the minority leader and member of the Working Families Party, as we continue our tour around the country of what cities and states are doing.
