Eight immigrant advocacy organizations held a public training Tuesday night to walk Philadelphia residents through the city’s new “ICE Out” laws, saying many people still don’t know what the legislation covers or how it is being enforced more than a month after it took effect.
The session at Folk Arts-Cultural Treasures Charter School covered what the laws restrict, which city-owned spaces are protected and what residents can do if they believe city employees have violated the rules. Organizers said the training was necessary because the city has not adequately communicated how the laws work in practice.
What the laws restrict
The “ICE Out” package places new limits on federal immigration enforcement activity in city-owned spaces and restricts how city employees can cooperate with immigration agents. Among other provisions, ICE agents cannot enter city-owned spaces without a judicial warrant, and city employees face limits on when they can assist federal immigration authorities.
Elena Emelchin Brunner, an immigration justice organizer at Asian Americans United, said the legislation aims to keep communities safe while ensuring local resources stay focused on local needs.
“We started meeting over a year ago with a couple different immigration justice organizations and some of the lawyers that we work with, and we wanted a way to at least protect our community members as much as possible, especially in places that are public and are paid for by our public tax dollars,” Emelchin Brunner said.
Emelchin Brunner led the training alongside Caitlin Barry, an immigration lawyer and law professor at Villanova University. They walked attendees through the package’s restrictions and how they translate into practice, including an exercise that tested understanding of the new rules by presenting scenarios involving ICE interactions with city employees.
Community groups fill the information gap
The training was organized by the Pennsylvania Immigration Coalition, Asian Americans United, Juntos, VietLead, New Sanctuary Movement, The Domestic Workers Alliance, Victim/Witness Services of South Philadelphia and Make the Road Pennsylvania.
Vivian Chang, executive director of Asian Americans United, said community organizations are hosting the sessions because the city has not adequately explained how the laws are being implemented.
“People really need this information. Yes, they’re hungry for it, but it also is just a huge gap in what’s not being provided, so unfortunately, community organizations have to provide it. We’re glad to do it, but also what we really need is the city to step up and enforce these laws,” Chang said.
Rhiannon Newcomer, a member of Concerned Pilipino Americans in Philadelphia, attended the training to learn more. CPAP works with migrant communities and has been distributing flyers about the legislation, which Newcomer said people find confusing.
“My biggest takeaway from this is, there’s just a lot of unanswered questions, and the city is not telling people what’s happening,” Newcomer said.
Groups press City Hall for enforcement details
Barry said the next necessary step is the city fully enforcing the legislation and communicating how it is doing so. Immigration justice groups are holding a press conference at Philadelphia City Hall on Tuesday at noon to demand transparency about the legislation’s implementation, training for city employees and a clear process for filing policy violations.
“It’s a really huge expansion of what the city’s policy had been before, which is really incredibly exciting. Now, we just need to see the city actually implement it throughout city government,” Barry said.