LOS ANGELES (CNS) - The first meeting of the Los Angeles City Council's Ad Hoc Committee on Immigrant Affairs is being held today in another move meant to counter the changes in federal policy believed to be coming under President Donald Trump.
The 6 p.m. meeting is a rare evening event meant to encourage citizen participation. The agenda for the committee includes both symbolic and substantive motions on immigration, and reports from some key leaders, including Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck and Los Angeles Unified School Board President Steve Zimmer.
The meeting is also expected to be a forum for members of the public to express their opinions on Trump and immigration issues in general. Committee Chair Gilbert Cedillo seems to be anticipating a large crowd and has asked that citizens wanting to attend to RSVP.
Trump has taken a number of positions hostile to illegal immigration, including threatening to deport up to 3 million immigrants in the country illegally, advocating for a wall to be built between Mexico and the U.S. and proposing a ban on Muslims entering the country.
“The election of Donald J. Trump as president of the United States has many residents throughout the city of Los Angeles deeply concerned about the impact of possible policy changes to immigration, federal funding of local programming, education and law enforcement,'' Cedillo said in a statement inviting the public to the meeting.
“As members of the Los Angeles City Council, it is our responsibility to protect and enhance the quality of life for all of our residents regardless of national origin, religion, ethnic group, language, sexual orientation, gender, marital status or immigration status.''
Trump has also threatened to cut off federal funding to so-called sanctuary cities.
While not fitting the typical definition of a “sanctuary city,'' in which undocumented immigrants are actively shielded from federal officials, Los Angeles has a policy of separating the work of the Los Angeles Police Department from that of federal immigration officials.
The committee's agenda includes a motion reaffirming the council's support for Special Order 40, which outlines the LAPD's decades-old policy of officers not instigating police activity for the sole purpose of determining an individual's immigration status.
Cedillo has asked those interested in attending to RSVP at
https://goo.gl/forms/Yz3LLyQKFTo8Emht1.