South Bay civic leaders said they remain ready to support the region’s immigrant community after news broke Thursday morning that President Donald Trump is backing off plans to surge federal law enforcement personnel in the Bay Area.
“They’ve made the right decision. Our region is on the rise,” Mayor Matt Mahan said during the news conference at the Amigos de Guadalupe Center for Justice and Empowerment in East San Jose.
The event had initially been called in response to Wednesday news reports that the Trump administration planned to deploy more than 100 federal law enforcement personnel to a Coast Guard base in Alameda. The planned deployment, which was said to include immigration enforcement officers, was seen as an attempt to make good on Trump’s promise to crack down on crime in San Francisco.
But by Thursday morning, the deployment had apparently been called off.
“I hope desperately for the good of all of our residents, including our most vulnerable neighbors, that this decision holds,” Mahan said.
Despite the sighs of relief, however, speakers at the East San Jose event — a group that also included elected officials for San Jose and Santa Clara County, as well as a number of nonprofit leaders — voiced skepticism that the apparent enforcement reprieve would stick.
An immigrant rights activist holds up a sign during the Thursday news conference with information for those who wish to report immigration enforcement activity to the Rapid Response Network. Photo by Keith Menconi.
“The administration has shown us that they change their minds from one hour to the next,” Rebeca Armendariz, a member of the Rapid Response Network, a coalition of community-run organizations that protect immigrants and their families from deportation raids in Santa Clara County, told San José Spotlight. “We want our community to continue to prepare themselves.”
To do so, Armendariz urged residents to report on the activity of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to her network.
Other speakers offered messages of solidarity to the South Bay’s immigrant community, encouraging them to be mindful of their rights during interactions with federal immigration officials.
“To our immigrant brothers and sisters, you are not alone,” Maritza Maldonado, executive director of Amigos de Guadalupe, said. “We see you. We love you. We will fight alongside you.”
ICE has conducted large-scale operations in cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco since President Donald Trump took office earlier this year. Santa Clara County has not seen this level of crackdown so far. But fears of immigration raids have kept San Jose students from attending class and slowed foot traffic at Latino-owned businesses. Some undocumented residents have chosen to self-deport.
With the threat of stepped up immigration raids looming, South Bay governments have been stiffening protections for undocumented residents in recent months.
County officials this week advanced plans to create “ICE-free zones” throughout the region. In such zones, local officials would raise physical barriers and lock gates to prevent federal immigration agents from unlawfully using county properties for surveillance and arrests. San Jose officials are considering a similar proposal to prevent ICE from using city-owned properties.
The county and city have also announced efforts to step up legal aid, family shelter, food, child care, health services and communication for undocumented residents.
District 5 Councilmember Peter Ortiz, who represents East San Jose and has been a chief backer of these efforts, was among those who spoke during the event.
“The Border Patrol and ICE have no business patrolling the streets and communities of East San Jose,” Ortiz said. “We will not accept fear as a form of government. We will not accept intimidation disguised as security.”
During his remarks, Mahan also reaffirmed the city’s commitment to its sanctuary city laws, which prohibit most forms of cooperation between San Jose police officers and immigration officials.
In addition, he also urged people who are considering protesting the administration’s actions to do so peacefully.
“Don’t give this administration a single reason to turn their sights to the South Bay,” he said.
Contact Keith Menconi at [email protected] or @KeithMenconi on X.