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Sanctuary Cities Vow To Make One Million Immigrants Citizens By End Of 2017

By Ashley Hoffman
Published on: 06:48 PST, Jul 16, 2017

Sanctuary cities across the U.S. have made the bold pledge to turn one million immigrants into citizens of the United States by the end of 2017, according to Fox News Insider.

Sanctuary citizens have teamed up with the “Naturalize NOW!” campaign, which includes liberal and progressive groups and other elected officials who have come together in the national effort of legalizing over one million immigrants by the end of the year.

Naturalize NOW! is an initiative aimed at preventing illegal immigrants from deportation under the Trump administration.

President Trump is not against legal immigration but has promised to crack down on illegal immigration into the U.S. and illegal residency in the case of criminals. The cities on board with the naturalization of one million immigrants by the end of this year include New York City, NY; San Francisco, CA; Seattle; Boston, MA; Chicago, IL; Dallas, TX; Jersey City, NJ; Los Angeles, CA; Miami, FL; Pittsburgh, PA; and Tucson, AZ.

Mayor Eric Garcetti of Los Angeles, California is another progressive elected official in support of the pledge made by “Naturalize NOW!.”

“We celebrate our independence on July 4, and honor the values of freedom, justice, unity, and equality that make us who we are.”

According to “Naturalize NOW!”, there has been an influx of immigrants applying for U.S. citizenship. This spike has come at a time when the Trump administration has sent out serious warnings to illegal immigrants about deportation.

‘Naturalize NOW’ to assist sanctuary cities across America to turn one million immigrants into citizens of the United States of America by the end of 2017. [Image by John Moore/Getty Images]

“Sanctuary” is not an official designation as there is no one true definition of what a sanctuary jurisdiction is. In general terms, a city, country or state can be considered to have sanctuary status if it chooses to place restrictions on the degree to which law enforcement can enforce immigration law, according to NPR.

Many opponents call this obstruction of federal law.

According to Mi Familia, “The Naturalize NOW!” campaign is halfway through accomplishing the target goal, with over half a million people submitting applications through the first half of this year.”

On June 20, the House of Representatives passed two bills known as “Kate’s Law” and the No Sanctuary for Criminals Act, aimed to crack down on illegal immigration, a key priority for President Donald Trump.

The bills that were aimed at punishing so-called “sanctuary cities” and is moving towards other immigration policies supported by President Trump.

The first bill is known as “Kate’s Law” is named after Kathryn Steinle, who was shot and killed in San Francisco by Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, an undocumented immigrant, with an extensive rap sheet who was previously deported.

Kate’s Law would increase criminal penalties for illegal immigrants who re-enter the United States illegally, according to an official statement released by the White House.

Months before her death, Lopez had been released by sheriff’s officials despite a request by immigration officials to keep him locked up behind bars. Lopez-Sanchez pleaded not guilty to killing 32-year-old, Kate Steinle.

The second bill, the No Sanctuary for Criminals Act, restricts taxpayer grant money to cities that prevent their police from turning over dangerous criminal aliens to federal authorities.

New U.S. citizens wave flags during a naturalization ceremony in New York. Sanctuary cities pushing to turn one million immigrants into U.S. citizens by the end of 2017. [Image by Bebeto Matthews/AP Images]

The sanctuary measure follows “a simple principle that if you’re going to receive taxpayer dollars from the federal government to keep people safe, that you’ve got to follow the law and keep them safe.”

Cities like San Francisco have prohibited municipal employees from using city funds or resources to aid in the enforcement of the federal immigration law. San Francisco City Attorney, Dennis Herrera, asserted that his city’s policies do not violate Section 1373. He also submitted a complaint to the U.S. Court district and argued that section 1373 is “unconstitutional on its face,” according to Daily News.

“… Any city funds or resources to assist in the enforcement of federal immigration law or to gather or disseminate information regarding release status of individuals.”

However, sanctuary city defenders claim it is the job of state and local police to enforce federal immigration law.

The city of San Francisco and the County of Santa Clara sued over Trump’s plan to withhold federal funds from cities found harboring illegal immigrants. California cannot interfere with federal immigration officers conducting deportation raids in the state. However, the Golden State can stop local deputies and police from helping the federal authorities enforce immigration laws, according to USA Today.

[Featured Image by Scott Olson/Getty Images]

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