Trump’s win convinced local conservatives they too have a mandate to rid Columbus of immigrants, but their tactics amount to nothing more than spreading lies, and hopefully that’s all they do. But the anxiety-inducing damage inflicted by these rumors is ongoing.
ICE agents are increasingly witnessed in Columbus making arrests of non-criminals, this is fact. Putting them in ICE-contracted county jails for overstaying their visa, for instance, which according to the Ohio Immigrant Alliance is a civil violation, not criminal. Thus, holding on to your job to achieve the American dream could get you sent to the hellhole that is Buter County jail which is run by Trump glory-hole lover Sherrif Richard K. Jones.
Nevertheless, the latest rumors spreading around Columbus are that Mayor Ginther forced ICE agents working here to stay at hotels outside City borders. The other untruth is that large numbers of MS-13 gang members are being rounded up on the West Side. Neither have a spec of validity. If either were true, ICE would be tooting its public horn to make sure everyone knew.
“This did not occur and has no basis in fact,” said Jennifer Fening, Deputy Chief of Staff of Communications for the Mayor’s Office, about the rumor of forcing ICE agents to stay in hotels outside Columbus.
The Free Press has been critical of Mayor Ginther’s leadership. However, Ginther’s willingness to protect Columbus’s established, non-gang affiliated immigrant community should be commended. The threat of losing federal housing money is staring the city in the face and certainly Columbus police, mostly ultra-conservative, are scoffing.
The good news, at least for now, is that Ginther’s 2017 executive order to Columbus police “remains legally sound,” Fening said.
“The order affirms that the City of Columbus will protect the well-being and safety of everyone who lives in our city, [and] we will not use city resources to apprehend anyone living in our city solely based on immigration status,” she said. “We remain committed to our values, to being a welcoming city, and to protecting the well-being and safety of everyone who lives in our city. We believe the law is on our side and we will not be intimidated from supporting Columbus residents, no matter where they were born.”
Imagine being a crime victim but fearing you will be the person arrested. This makes immigrants a more inviting target for criminals. Exasperating is how local immigration rumors are likely started and spread by those (white people) who live outside I-270. Their illogical fear towards “sanctuary cities” has reached a fever pitch. Little do they know even the conservative Cato Institute says sanctuary city policies do not raise crime rates.
Worse is how rural and small-town office holders at the Ohio Statehouse are desperate to appease their isolated constituents. What these countrified constituents must not realize is: Who’s going to render chickens for the kids’ nuggets? Who’s going to fix roofs when it is 100-degrees Celsius? Who’s going to clean up hotel rooms after they’ve been trashed by partiers? And on and on.
The countrified Ohio GOP, which has the Statehouse by the neck, has introduced a wave of bills to force Ohio’s cities to work lockstep with ICE. For instance there’s the laughably named “Protecting Ohio Communities Act,” or House Bill 26, which would force sanctuary city police to share information with ICE, after a traffic stop, for instance.
Yesterday (June 18th), the Ohio Senate passed Senate Bill 172 and moves to the Ohio House. Senator Paula Hicks-Hudson (D-Toledo) stated in a press release, “American citizens should not have to carry their passports to prove their citizenship, but this law will now require that.” The bill prohibits any local anti-ICE ordinance, such as Ginther’s. The bill allows immigration arrests “based solely on suspicion,” added Hicks-Hudson.
SB 172 was inspired in part by what Franklin County Common Pleas Court judges (17 of them) ruled back in March. ICE cannot arrest anyone within the courthouse even if they have a warrant, and arrests within courtrooms must first be approved by Franklin County judges.
“[SB 172] would turn Ohio into a police state, facilitating the masked abductions of more community members in all sorts of public places,” says Lynn Tramonte, who leads the Ohio Immigrant Alliance. “This bill would cause more Ohio children to lose the daily presence of mothers and fathers, instead of creating pathways to legal status or allowing people who are already following a process to continue it. We need lawmakers to bring people together and call on the federal government to enact sensible solutions. And for those who claim to be following traditions of faith, it’s a good time to evaluate what their traditions truly teach.”
