Whereas in the wake of the recent Presidential election, many people live in fear of President Donald Trump’s large-scale deportation agenda, including the administration’s directive to Immigration and Customs Enforcement to arrest up to 1,500 people a day, the threat of immigrant incarceration in Guantanamo Bay, the possible revocation of birthright citizenship, and the Laken Reily Act that allows for the deportation of immigrants accused or charged (not convicted) with a crime;
Whereas the current presidential administration has pushed for collaboration between ICE and law enforcement, including the proposed No Bail Outs for Sanctuary Cities Act (HR32), expanding the use of the criminal justice system for the purposes of deportation;
Whereas immigrants can be deported to countries where they have no connections, do not speak the language, and cannot find work;
Whereas the President of the United States has targeted for deportation resident alien faculty, staff, and students who exercised their First Amendment rights in protesting the genocide in Gaza;
Whereas deportation can be a death sentence for those who fled originally to avoid political and social persecution (from LGBTQ+ immigrants to union organizers);
Whereas many cities – including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Oakland, and Santa Ana — have declared themselves “Sanctuary Cities” for immigrants;
Whereas some unions — including the California Faculty Association, the American Association of University Professors, the American Federation of Teachers, the National Union of Healthcare Workers in California, the Teamsters Joint Council 16 in New York, and the Office and Professional Employees International Union in Washington state — have passed sanctuary resolutions;
Whereas the University of California has committed to conforming with the requirements of the California Values Act (SB 54), has widely shared this commitment with the UCLA community, has provided information on both state and local laws, and helped promote “Know Your Rights” information sessions.
Therefore, be it resolved that:
- CUCFA declares its support for the California Values Act (SB 54), and will work to uphold or strengthen this law. This means its members will not voluntarily cooperate with federal agents to enforce immigration laws and will not collect immigration status information;
- CUCFA will publicize and promote Know Your Rights workshops, informing members of the our community of their legal rights with regards to immigration enforcement;
- CUCFA and its FAs will work on behalf of all faculty, students, and staff regardless of their citizenship or immigration status;
- CUCFA members will never require disclosure of immigration information from its members or the colleagues, staff, and students with whom they work;
- CUCFA will build alliances with other community groups working to protect immigrant and undocumented communities, and participate in actions in response to ICE raids or deportation threats;
- CUCFA declares itself a “Sanctuary Union” and stands with organizations such as the AAUP, AFT, CFA, California NUHW, New York Teamsters in New York, and Washington state OPEIU, and will publicize our resolution in order to invite other community groups to follow suit.