During the Feb. 24 Mayor\u2019s South Side Task Force hybrid meeting held in the NCC Fowler Center, Chair Janine Santoro moderated a discussion of ICE and how it would be handled if Bethlehem would become a target of aggressive federal mass deportations.<\/p>\n
Bethlehem Police Chief Michelle Kott attended online to address questions raised about ICE tactics at the previous meeting. She said the city and her department have had conversations regarding federal deportation operations in light of recent events in Minneapolis. She praised Gov. Josh Shapiro\u2019s proactive stance on potential ICE activity within the state and recommended checking out the commonwealth\u2019s comprehensive website on police interaction: pa.gov\/know-your-rights<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Bethlehem Police Department serves all residents,\u201d said Kott. \u201cWe work extremely hard to maintain public trust without regard to an individual\u2019s immigration status,\u201d explaining that officers \u201cenforce local and state laws that safeguard the public\u2019s health, safety and welfare.\u201d The department \u201cdoes not enforce immigration law,\u201d she added. \u201cIn order for us to enforce immigration law, we would have to participate in a program called the Community 287 (g) Program with the federal government, with ICE.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kott declared: \u201cWe do not, and we will not, participate in that program while I\u2019m chief of police here in the City of Bethlehem.\u201d<\/p>\n
Expressing pride that the BPD is accredited, she said, \u201cWe investigate crimes and we work diligently to protect victims and witnesses, irrespective of their immigration status.\u201d She clarified they are required to adapt \u201cbest practices.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf an individual is breaking the law, the Bethlehem Police Department would take action,\u201d said Kott as she pointed out that no one is above the law, including local, state or federal officers. However, she explained that with the \u201cSupremacy Clause,\u201d if federal agents are lawfully working \u201cunder the color of federal law,\u201d local police cannot step in.<\/p>\n
Referring to the 2020 George Floyd murder, Kott said, \u201cDuty to intervene is something that is covered in the Bethlehem Police Department policies and directives.\u201d Citing case law, she said a police officer has the duty to intercede to prevent another officer from \u201csubjecting a citizen to excessive force.\u201d<\/p>\n
If confronted by masked individuals, a person feeling threatened can call on the local police to intervene. Kott noted that some criminals are posing as ICE officers, then scamming victims. Arriving police officers are instructed to de-escalate the situation, as well as check IDs and verify judicial warrants. \u201cThese would be handled on a case-by-case basis,\u201d remarked Kott.<\/p>\n
3Sixty Pharma Solutions CEO Dalfoni Banerjee asked what the community can do to prepare for a potential influx of immigration officers. Santoro replied there is an emergency response network of community members organizing and training for such a scenario.<\/p>\n
When Banerjee asked about the possibility of local government being able to expedite a person\u2019s immigration status through the system, Bethlehem Community Police Officer William Rodriguez answered, \u201cIt has to do with how you got here.\u201d Jeff Zettlemoyer from Housing Opportunities weighed in with how the federal government has been \u201ckicking this can down the road\u201d on reform since George H.W. Bush was president. The path to citizenship is more like a \u201clabyrinth.\u201d<\/p>\n
When describing the district\u2019s experience working with M.I.R.A. Resources from Allentown, BASD\u2019s Eric Fontanez said, \u201cThey have been wonderful.\u201d Headed by Clarice James, the organization provides needed information and support to families of district students in matters like these.<\/p>\n
Lehigh students Mariana King and Jordon Knox outlined their work with Professor Kate Jackson in the B Beautiful: Community Mapping for Environmental Justice. They, along with Lehigh student Jiaqian Xu (attending online), are working in partnership with the Southside community to identify trash hotspots and other pressing environmental concerns.<\/p>\n
Zettlemoyer promoted Housing Opportunities\u2019 Closing Assistance Program that provides funding toward a qualifying individual homebuyer\u2019s closing costs. He spoke about one1-bedroom \u201ctiny\u201d dwellings that older empty-nesters could be interested in as a viable form of affordable housing.<\/p>\n
Attending online, Aliya Ali mentioned YWCA Bethlehem\u2019s Courageous Conversations sessions continue with one on April 23 from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. The YWCA Pop-Up Prom Shop happens 8 a.m. – 1 p.m. on March 28 at Wind Creek. They continue seeking volunteers and donations.<\/p>\n
Joining remotely from Lehigh University, Carolina Hernandez announced that, during construction of the new Fountain Hill ES, the Fountain Hill Food Pantry has been relocated to St. Ursula Roman Catholic Church at 1301 Sioux St. The food bank is open every second and fourth Wednesday every month.<\/p>\n
Also attending online, Katy Knibbs announced the Southside Arts District Survey is open online until March 30. She requested public feedback to help the organization plan for the next 10 years.<\/p>\n
Santoro announced the 40 in 10: Every Park in 10 Years Plan Release is scheduled for April 2 at the Ice House from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. The initiative involves upgrading all of the city\u2019s parks within a 10-year span.<\/p>\n
Bethlehem\u2019s State of the City address is scheduled for 7 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. April 8 at the ArtsQuest Musikfest Caf\u00e9.<\/p>\n
The next monthly Southside Community Cleanup, hosted by Community Action Development Corp. Bethlehem, is scheduled for April 11 from 10 a.m. – noon at Yosko Park.<\/p>\n
CADB also offers a free eight-week course in Community Housing Advocacy Training at their office at 1337 E. Fifth St. through April 16.<\/p>\n
Santoro reminded all that there are still openings on Bethlehem authorities, boards and commissions as well as open positions at city hall. The Bethlehem Police Department is also accepting applications.<\/p>\n
The Mayor\u2019s South Side Task Force regularly meets on the last Tuesday of the month.<\/p>\n
Chair Janine Santoro facilitates the Feb. 24 Mayor\u2019s South Side Task Force hybrid meeting from a conference room in the NCC Fowler Center.<\/p>\n
At right, Bethlehem Community Police Officer William Rodriguez joins the discussion about ICE. At left, is Lehigh University Police Officer C.R. Stokes.<\/p>\n
At left, Jeff Zettlemoyer from Housing Opportunities takes notes as Supervisor of Equity Initiatives at Bethlehem Area School District Eric Fontanez speaks about the district\u2019s experience working with M.I.R.A. Resources.<\/p>\n
3Sixty Pharma Solutions CEO Dalfoni Banerjee asks how community members can prepare for a possible ICE situation.<\/p>\n
Press photos by Ed CourrierFrom left, Lehigh University students Jordon Knox and Mariana King outline their involvement in the B Beautiful: Community Mapping for Environmental Justice project.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"During the Feb. 24 Mayor\u2019s South Side Task Force hybrid meeting held in the NCC Fowler Center, Chair…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":141138,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[153,155,154],"class_list":["post-141137","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem-headlines","tag-bethlehem-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141137","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=141137"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141137\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/141138"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=141137"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=141137"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=141137"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}