pwandell20ahsgov-blog

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CIVIC ACTION ASSESSMENT OF ISSUE

I see my role as a citizen as an obligation to keep myself educated on the important issues in the US. Most issues never see change because not enough people decided to care and try to strive for change. I think this problem can be solved by simply educating myself and others about problems that may not directly affect me, but affect a lot of people in this country.

In this class I’ve learned that its actually easy to do civic action. If you want to make a positive impact on the community, there are many opportunities everywhere to do that. I’ve also learned that its important to take civic responsibility seriously if anything is going to change higher up. I’m thankful that civic action was a big focus of this class this semester.

Yes, I think I have a responsibility to at least get involved somehow with my issue. This is because I do have a genuine interest in it, and I have the resources and the ability to do something. 

I would love to become more educated about this issue in the future. I’ve always wanted to work in government, preferably something that involves International Relations like the Foreign Service, so I’m very intrigued by immigration and sanctuary cities. If I get the chance I really want to find a protest or movement regarding my issue that I could participate in. I’d also want to continue to educate myself on what goes on with immigration policy in government so that I can inform the people around me and become more aware.

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EXECUTIVE ACTION ASSESSMENT OF ISSUE

White House Stance

President Trump believes that the country needs an immigration system that serves the nation’s interest first. To do this he wants to build a border wall and end chain migration. Basically he wants to prioritize the safety and comfort of Americans, while helping new citizens assimilate to our society.

I agree that this is a nice goal to have for the US and immigration. It mentions the safety of American citizens while also promising attention to immigrants trying to assimilate. However, I don’t think action is being taken to stay true to this statement. Yes, efforts are being made to keep the US comfortable for American citizens, but terrible things are being done to illegal immigrants and immigrants are not getting much positive attention.

The Department of Homeland Security manages the issue of immigration and sanctuary cities.

Their mission is to secure the nation from any threats with the goal of keeping America safe. This statement does relate to my issue because illegal immigration does put the safety of Americans in jeopardy. People coming in to the country illegally does spark fear because realistically it does put citizens in danger.

The secretary of the department is Chad F. Wolf, a graduate from Southern Methodist University where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in History as well as a Master’s Certificate in Government Contract Management from Villanova University. Wolf served as Vice President and Senior Director at a bipartisan public policy consultancy and held staff positions in the US Senate. He is also the first Under Secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Strategy, Policy, and Plans. His education and experience greatly impacts how the department is run and what progress is made. Under Wolf, the department has been able to complete the recently released DHS Strategic Plan, which establishes the Department’s long-term strategic goals. He has also led many significant initiatives to fight against international and domestic terrorism, prevent terrorist travel, and safeguard the US electoral process. 

Illegal Immigration is a big focus for the Department of Homeland Security right now. In order to help improve the current situation and to keep US citizens safe, the department is referring and then prosecuting illegal immigrants crossing the border, considering building a border wall, and deploying the National Guard at the border. All of these actions are supposedly meant to disrupt cartels, smugglers, and nefarious actors.

From what I’ve read, it is clear that the Executive branch has taken a lot of action on the issue of immigration. It appears as one of the main issues they are working on. I’m impressed with the amount of action that is being done, however I don’t agree with the ideas behind these actions. I don’t think Trump would ever cut funding for this department because the work being done here is very important for his stance on immigration. The executive branch is trying to close off the US from the rest of the world by slowly making it harder for immigrants to feel safe in this country. It projects a very hostile attitude to foreigners and to anyone wishing to start a new life in the US.

SACAPS

Subject- This article is about how the Trump administration appears determined to send illegal immigrants to sanctuary cities across the country in order to “exact revenge on Democrats”.

Author- The article was written by Martin Pengelly, and editor for The Guardian

Context- Republicans and Democrats have been fighting over illegal immigration for the entirety of Trump’s presidency. The tension is high between the two parties which is what has caused this to occur.

Audience- From what I’ve read in this article I think the intended audience are liberal readers.

Perspective- This article seems to be trying to stay unbiased and moderate, but it is definitely leaning more towards the left. It paints Trump and his administration in a way that would only be appealing for democrats, therefore I believe that it is a biased article.

Significance- This article is significant in that it brings up a current event while also shedding light on just how much the tension between the democratic and republican parties has affected politics and news.

I agree with a lot of the points that are made in the quotes that are used in the article, but I think that the article itself focuses more on following and explaining current events than expressing an opinion about it.

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STATE AND LEGISLATIVE ACTION

Rebecca Bauer-Kahan

There is no mention of sanctuary cities or immigration on this site. I imagine this is because the issue of illegal immigration is more of a national one, and Rebecca Bauer-Kahan wants to focus on more local issues. Immigration has been a big focus of the federal government in recent years, so I’m very surprised that I couldn’t find anything on it.

I couldn’t find any legislation about sanctuary cities or immigration.

Steve Glazer

Glazer’s stance on sanctuary cities and immigration is that immigrants are not criminals, and that they deserve humane treatment. He believes it is not only wrong, but illogical to build detention centers for immigrants. The detention centers he talks about cost a lot of money to build and are not healthy living spaces for immigrants. Glazer believes a better approach to the issue of illegal immigration is to place immigrants in safe and affordable housing, and for government to reconsider its immigration policy. 

I agree with this position. I believe that illegal immigration needs to be dealed with in the US, but I think there is a much more humane way of handling the problem. I think it’s morally wrong to lock up illegal immigrants in terrible conditions at the border, and that there is a better way to go about it.

There is no legislation on sanctuary cities or immigration on this site.

AB-1332

Introduced on February 22, 2019

It states that on January 1, 2020 it will require the Department of Justice to publish a list on its website of each person that is providing data broker, extreme vetting, or detention facilities support to any federal immigration agency.

I agree with this bill because I think it stands for the same beliefs on illegal immigration and sanctuary cities that I do. It secures immigrants’ rights to have fair treatment and for power not to be abused when it comes to immigrants. I understand that the bill could definitely be controversial, but I would still encourage others to support this bill. 

Mark DeSaulnier

I couldn’t find anything on sancutary cities but when I searched for illegal immigration, I found that DeSaulnier seems to support the protection of illegal immigrants from imprisonment and separation. It appears that he takes pride in immigrant families being reunited, and he wants to hold President Trump accountable for the injustices forced upon immigrants.

He has introduced the National Public Health Act that will hold corporations accountable for actions that hurt public health. This will help preserve the safety of immigrants. 

Kamala Harris 

It is clear to me that Harris is strongly invested in the issue of illegal immigration and sanctuary cities. She does not agree with the use of camps to keep immigrants in, and she makes the effort to keep herself informed and to keep the topic alive in government. From everything I’ve read about her stance on this subject, I can tell she is not afraid to question what is happening to immigrants in the US. 

With the help of Patrick Leahy, Cory Booker, and Zoe Lofgren, Harris has introduced the Refugee Protection Act of 2019, which will help restore U.S. refugee and asylum systems. This bill was introduced in response to Trump’s attempts to shut the US off from immigration.

Diane Feinstein

When looking through her website, I was happy to find a lot on Feinstein’s stance on sanctuary cities. Looking at all of it together, I think that Feinstein definitely supports the efforts of sanctuary cities. She believes that government and law enforcement should focus only on dangerous criminals instead of going after any illegal immigrant they find. She thinks that this would make it safer for everyone involved.

I could not find any mention of sponsored bills related to my topic.

On the website there are many bills pertaining to my issue, I counted over 30.

I’ve chosen to analyze bill number 546.

If passed, this bill will allow Americans to fund the creation of the southern border wall through “Border Bonds”.

It will most likely cause many people who do believe in the wall to donate money, and government would still receive that money even if it is not enough to fund the wall/ if the plan never goes through.

I would vote no because I believe that building the wall on the southern border would be an incredible waste of money, and I don’t believe in the wall anyway. I think it’s ridiculous to expect people to send in enough “border bonds” to add up to the estimated 5 billion dollars required for the wall. I just don’t believe in the idea of a wall and wouldn’t want citizens putting money towards it.

This bill originated in the House, neither the Senate nor the House has voted on it, it is not enacted, and Border Security, Facilitation, and Operations commitees have reviewed it.

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POLITICAL INTEREST GROUPS AND PACS ASSESSMENT

America’s Voice.

Their cause is to fight for policy change that will guarantee full labor, civil and political rights for immigrants and their families in America.

1. The founder of the group served 17 years as Executive Director of the National Immigration Forum.

2. They encourage supporters to send them links to racist ads online so that they can CALL OUT THOSE WHO RUN THEM AND THOSE WHO FUND THEM.

3. There’s something listed as a resource called “Tweet a Hater”.

4. Seems that it asks for a lot of participation and information from people on the outside to inform them of things, that’s their way of getting people involved.

5. There’s a blog as well as a press section.

America’s Voice supports and desires channels for future legal immigration that are flexible and functional.

This group is located in Washington DC, and there doesn't seem to be any meetings or events held outside Washington DC.

There are no specific volunteer opportunities listed, but there are many articles under “Take Action” that provide ways of helping their cause, like donating. 

I find it interesting that most of what they have on their website is just many articles on the topic. There isn’t much on them specifically, it’s more of a collection of information regarding Immigration. 

California Immigrant Policy Center

It was founded in response to the welfare challenge facing immigrants in California, and it seeks to inform the public on issues affecting California’s immigrants and their families in order to improve the quality of life for all Californians.

 1. They have offices in Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego and Oakland.

 2. They have been active for 20 years.

 3. Founded in aftermath of Proposition 187 and harsh federal copycats.

 4. They have a section for press releases and statements.

5.Talks about Truth Act which helps protect immigrants’ rights in jail.

They support the passage of SB 54, which promises to push ICE out of California and away from its cities. They want to make California a safer place for immigrants to work and find housings and jobs.

They are located mainly in Sacramento and have locations in Los Angeles, San Diego, and Oakland. I think it’s entirely possible that there are local events held near Oakland that I could attend.

I found that there are many opportunities to get involved on this website, it includes propositions that they support, ways to stay active and informed, and events in local areas. 

I think the “Know Your Rights” area of the website is interesting just because I haven’t seen it before on other sites, and I think it’s a unique resource that they offer that could be very beneficial for people.

 Ideal Immigration PAC

It seems that this PAC doesn’t support the Ideal Immigration Policy, that was made to help improve US Immigration Policy. This makes me think that this PAC is against Immigration, either legal or illegal, and don’t wish for there to be any improvements when it comes to policy. They like it the way it is.

Total money raised was $28,778, and total money spent was $28,484. It seems that they have $294 on hand.

There isn’t any official money towards Republicans or Democrats. It just says $0.

Almost all of their donations are from Texas, coming from someone named Steve Kuhn. He has donated a total of $22,000.

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POLITICAL PARTY ACTION

In this blog post I’ll identify the position of multiple political parties on the topic of sanctuary cities.

Republican- The Republican party believes that immigration makes great contributions to the US, but that our immigration policy needs to put the interests of American citizens first. They want to secure the border and stop illegal immigration. Once that is stopped, they want to fix the system to help legal immigrants get to America safely.

Democrat- The Democrats recognize that the current immigration system isn’t ideal in America. They support legal immigrants and believe that there are reforms that have to be made to make the whole process faster and easier. They want due process for all, no discrimination, and they don’t stand for the way Trump treats immigrants.

Libertarian- They believe that when it comes to immigration, an immigrants sexual orientation, preference, gender, or gender identity shouldn’t impact how they are treated. This is the only time immigration is mentioned.

Green- The Green Party believes people in this country deserve social justice regardless of their immigration status, and that no matter what they should be treated humanely. They think that immigration raids are bad and that people should be able to choose which country they want to live in.

Peace and Freedom- The Peace and Freedom Party believes that immigrants deserve full equal rights in the workplace. They state that no human is illegal, that ICE raids must be stopped, as well as the jailing and deportation of immigrants.

Personally I identify with the democratic platform, because I agree with the beliefs that they have on immigration. Although some of the other parties have pretty similar beliefs, the democratic platform had a lot more in depth ideas about it, and stated actual plans in detail on how to fix the problem. I did find it surprising how similar each party’s statement was though when it came to beliefs.

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CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES

Jama v. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Decided on January 12, 2005

A Somalian refugee named Keyse Jama was arrested. The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) heard about this and argued that he be deported to Somalia. Jama appealed to a federal district court and argued that it’s against the law to deport someone who has not first been accepted by their home country. Since Somalia didn’t have a functioning government this would be impossible. The court decided that Jama had misinterpreted the law and could therefore be deported.

May immigration officials deport someone to their home country under 8 U.S.C. 1231(b)(2)(E)(iv), if the country lacks a functioning government that is able to accept the person's return?

8 U.S.C. 1231(b)(2)(E)(iv)

The decision was that it is constitutional to deport a person back to a country without a functioning government, one which is not able to accept the person back at that time. 

This case set the precedent that it is okay to send illegal immigrants and refugees out of the country if they appear to pose a threat to the US. Even if the country they are being sent back to is dysfunctional or dangerous, they may be deported anyway.  

The question of this court case is a complicated one, but looking at the decision that was made, I don’t agree with the court’s decision. I think that it isn’t right to knowingly send someone to a country which lacks a government and may be dangerous. I believe that more can be done for a person to ensure their safety than to send them into danger just to get rid of them. 

Twitter SACAPS:

Subject- New study shows that deporting illegal immigrants may not reduce crime as well as many people believe. 

Author- Anna Flagg

Context- Lots of people in government spread the myth that the removal of illegal immigrants from American cities reduces the amount of crime in that city and makes it safer. According to a recent study done at UC Davis, the deportation of immigrants from cities doesn’t affect crime rates at all, and crime in the US is decreasing on its own.

Audience- The intended audience are liberal readers, and also readers who are pretty central on the subject.

Perspective- The author sticks to the facts and has many credible sources, but I would say that the article is still biased because the article supports left leaning ideas and discredits any right winged beliefs.

Significance- This article disproves a myth that a lot of people, including many politicians, use to justify how illegal immigrants are getting treated in the United States 

I do agree with the article because the facts have sources that are credible and the point that is made is logical. I also personally believe that it doesn’t make sense to blame illegal immigrants for most of the crimes that happen in US cities, because almost all immigrants come to the United States because they want to live a life away from crime and danger.

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MEDIA ASSESSMENT OF ISSUE

‘Thomas Homan: Here’s the truth about sanctuary cities’

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/thomas-homan-ice-illegal-immigrants-border-crisis-sanctuary-cities

Subject- This article talks about how Sanctuary Cities are dangerous to society, and how they only cause cause problems. 

Author- Thomas Homan, who is the former director of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement 

Context- Published as an opinion piece on Fox News on June 17

Audience- Republican readers

Perspective- This article is subjective, it is one-sided and and is biased towards right wing beliefs. The author’s claim is that no good can come out of sanctuary cities, because all they do is protect criminals and make it hard for ICE to do its job. I don’t agree with this because I don’t think that every illegal immigrant is a bad person.

Significance- Some statistics are presented, like “50 percent of those criminals will re-offend within the first year and as many as 75 percent will re-offend within five years”, but there are no sources given for any information shown.

‘Trump Is Threatening to Ship Undocumented to Sanctuary Cities'

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/hamedaleaziz/trump-immigrants-sanctuary-cities

Subject- The article follows the issue of illegal immigration and the large number of people at the border. It also talks about how President Trump has handled/reacted to this problem.

Author- Hamed Aliaziz, a news reporter for BuzzFeed

Context- Posted to BuzzFeed News on April 12, 2019

Audience- Liberal/Democrat readers

Perspective- This article is subjective. It leans towards the left side and appeals towards democrat and liberal readers. The author’s claim in this article is that President Trump acts threatening towards the immigrants seeking shelter in sanctuary cities, and wants to get rid of them.

Significance- There aren’t many sources presented, the ones that are given are for quotes; like London Breed who’s the Mayor of San Francisco.

‘U.S. Cities Prepare for Planned ICE Raids’

https://www.npr.org/2019/07/13/741118939/u-s-cities-prepare-for-planned-ice-raids-on-sunday

Subject- This article explains the plan to have a nationwide ICE raid this past July. It follows and explains the reactions of 10 US cities that were expecting the raids.

Author- Vanessa Romo and Dani Matias, writers for NPR

Context- Published to NPR on July 13

Audience- People who want to learn more about the ICE raids and different US cities’ reactions towards it.

Perspective- This article is objective, because it doesn’t take just one side when explaining the situation. It just states the facts and doesn’t lean to one side, making it a neutral article. The competing persepectives that are presented in this article are the people that support sanctuary cities and illegal immigrant families, and those who don’t support sanctuary cities (they support the ICE raids). 

Significance- Sources are presented when needed, mostly for quotes. Sources include Ken Cuccinelli who’s the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, or Sylvester Turner, the Mayor of Houston. 

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CONCEPTUALIZING THE ISSUE AND ASSESSING TYPES OF ACTION

I chose Sanctuary Cities as my civic action issue, because it is a topic that I have strong feelings about and that I am interested in. I love living near to sanctuary cities like Oakland and San Francisco, and I would like to learn more about how they work. I realize the importance of sanctuary cities all over the US, and I want to focus on them for my blog because they genuinely interest me. 

I think that the issue of sanctuary cities is important because there are so many all over America, and there is a lot of controversy over them today. There’s arguments for both sides in the media, and often it is difficult to find what is true and what isn’t. Sanctuary cities also play a huge role in the controversy of illegal immigration, making it very important.

I believe that people must inform themselves more about sanctuary cities and the role they play in people’s lives. Being informed about the controversy surrounding immigration and these cities is important because chances are there is one close to where you live. Staying aware and knowing what’s going on in their areas would allow people to better make decisions for themselves.

On Twitter I’m following:

- The New York Times, because I think it’s a trustworthy news source that I can count on for coverage of my issue.

- City of San Francisco, because I want to stay updated and it is a sanctuary city that I am familiar with and close to.

- CNN, because I think I’ll be able to use it for news updates and staying informed on both sides’ opinions

- Fox News, because I want to see information from both sides to hopefully avoid bias when researching.

- ICE, because they play a major role in illegal immigration and I’d like to know what they have to say about it on Twitter.