PIERRE, SD — “Sanctuary City” is a term which in the past decade has come to some prominence. To some, it represents a form of police policy which allows police to spend resources on investigations. To others it is a boogeyman of a term, indicating that a city has become unsafe, or that undocumented immigrants will be protected under all circumstances. The term itself is not a legal one, which only adds to confusion.
However given the recent, potentially unlawful actions of the federal government, bringing the National Guard and Marines into conflict with protestors in Los Angeles (a noted Sanctuary City), an action which Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem referred to as attempting to “liberate this city from the socialist and the burdensome leadership that this governor and that this mayor have placed on this country,” as well as a South Dakota bill, signed into law on Wednesday by Governor Larry Rhoden, the topic has once again been brought to the forefront of public consciousness. So, in the name of clarity, what is a Sanctuary City Anyway?
History
The origins of the Sanctuary City can be traced back to a faith-based movement in the 1980s, during which Reagan-era policies reclassified refugees fleeing El Salvador and Guatemala in response to ongoing civil wars in both countries as “economic migrants”, refusing them asylum in the US. Starting in 1982 six churches representing several Christian groups wishing to aid these refugees and preserve the traditions of churches and synagogues as places of refuge created the Sanctuary Movement in response, providing food, medicine, employment, and other aid to those arriving to the US. By 1985 this movement expanded to include 500 Churches and Synagogues which provided aid to refugees.
Following the growth of such practices, San Francisco established itself as a sanctuary city in 1989, which prohibited “use of City funds or resources to assist in the enforcement of federal immigration law or to gather information regarding the immigration status of individuals in the city and county of San Francisco, unless such assistance is required by federal or State statute, regulation or court decision”. In short, city law enforcement was not obliged to gather information for ICE unless otherwise compelled by state or federal law.
What is a Sanctuary City?
“Sanctuary Cities” are often difficult to define in exact terms, however within this loose definition the term has come to mean a city which practices so-called “Sanctuary Policies” (also not a legally-defined term). So then the question comes to what exactly a Sanctuary Policy is?
Sanctuary Policy is an umbrella term for policies enacted by a city which broadly prevents city resources from being directed to aid Immigration Enforcement directly. Oftentimes these are policies which do not allow police to enquire about the immigration status of an individual, prevents law enforcement from sharing information on individuals with ICE, or restricts city police from detaining or holding immigrants based on immigrant status. It is notable that such laws do not protect Immigrants from prosecution for other criminal or civil offenses, and is purely a matter of not focusing on immigration status.
Supporters of such policies hold that they increase trust in local law enforcement, saying that immigrants are at times witnesses, or hold information relevant to to criminal investigations and are less likely to cooperate with law enforcement with the knowledge that it may result in deportation, and that often-strained police resources are better used in investigating criminal offenses and not the civil offense of being undocumented. Detractors often state that such policy flies in the face of Rule of Law, which forms a fundamental basis for our nation’s government, and while there is no federal law which mandates cooperation between city law enforcement agencies and ICE, Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act provides an avenue for law enforcement to pursue cooperation with the agency.
How Does This Affect South Dakota?
During Governor Rhoden’s recent visit to the southern border he announced that South Dakota Highway Patrol would be cooperating with ICE under a Section 287(g) program, working to aid in the “Identification and apprehension of illegal aliens”.
Additionally in spite of having no current sanctuary cities, Governor Rhoden signed into law Senate Bill 7, brought forward by Senator Casey Crabtree, which explicitly bans state entities or political subdivision (such as municipalities, and their respective police departments) from adopting policy, order, or ordinance that “Limits or prohibits an individual from communicating or cooperating with a federal agency or official to verify or report the immigration status of another individual” as well as policy which “Grants a noncitizen unlawfully present in the United States the right to lawful presence or status within the state or political subdivision”.
Too Long; Didn’t Read
A sanctuary city is a concept originally based on the religious charity prescribed by the abrahamic religions, with the Sanctuary Movement utilizing churches in their historical role of places of refuge and aid.
Such practices of providing refuge were then adopted by municipalities, taking on policy which would prevent local law enforcement from inquiring on immigrant status, with the intention of increasing trust and making undocumented immigrants more likely to cooperate with police investigations.
This has been opposed by the state government of South Dakota who has announced law enforcements’ cooperation with ICE and the adoption of Senate Bill 7, preventing Sanctuary City policies from being enacted in the state. South Dakota prior to this did not have any legislation seeking to create Sanctuary Cities, nor any pre-existing Sanctuary Cities– making this likely a proactive measure to halt future attempts, or to simply set a policy position for the state on the subject.
