Nashville council members, advocates voice support for 'sanctuary city'-like policies

Ariana Maia Sawyer | The Tennessean

Show Caption Hide Caption Nashville lawmakers, advocates voice support for 'sanctuary city'-like policies Vice Mayor David Briley and other local lawmakers urged the city Wednesday to adopt two bills that would put into practice some sanctuary city-like policies in Nashville.

Vice Mayor David Briley and other Metro Council members urged the city Wednesday to adopt two bills that would put into practice some sanctuary city-like policies in Nashville.

"I am asking the Metro Council to adopt these ordinances. I am asking Mayor (Megan) Barry to sign them," Briley said at the press conference in front of the Metro Courthouse. "Now's the moment to prove we are the friendly, welcoming city we say we are."

The bills, filed Tuesday by Council members Bob Mendes and Colby Sledge, don't use the term "sanctuary city," but if passed, the city would implement policies similar to cities that have used the term.

One ordinance would prohibit any Metro Nashville agency from using its resources, facilities or money to carry out federal immigration enforcement unless required by a judicial warrant.

That means the Davidson County Sheriff's Office would be barred from continuing to honor voluntary requests from Immigration and Customs Enforcement to hold inmates for longer than the law would otherwise allow unless presented with a warrant signed by a judge.

The other ordinance would end and renegotiate a 20-year-old contract with the federal government to stop the Davidson County Jail from being used as a regional ICE detention center.

Mendes, who said he feels a powerful moral obligation to make the city safe for everyone, stressed that the legislation does not violate state or federal law.

"What it does do is take the discretion and flexibility that federal and state law allow cities to protect its citizens and use that discretion to create an environment that is safe for everyone," he said.

► Read More: Nashville to consider 'sanctuary city'-type policies as immigration debate rages

The Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, which partnered with council members to write the ordinance, held the press conference in part to launch their "Nashville Together" campaign.

Nashville Together aims to organize immigrants, refugees and their neighbors in support of the legislation, set for first reading Tuesday. TIRRC said the bills are meant to keep families together, stop local resources from being diverted to federal programs, avoid making the city vulnerable to civil rights lawsuits and prevent changing federal policies from compromising public services.

So far, there are 14 co-sponsors on the bill to stop the city from collaborating with ICE beyond what is required by state and federal law and eight co-sponsors on the contract renegotiation bill.

The ordinances come as arrests of immigrants who entered the nation illegally or overstayed their visas are on the rise under the Trump administration.

"The lives of immigrant families in Nashville have been transformed since the election," said TIRRC Co-Executive Director Stephanie Teatro. "The president and ICE have made clear that all 33,000 undocumented Nashvillians are a priority for deportation and that they'll try to use our local government to scale up immigration enforcement."

Teatro said as the result, immigrant families have been afraid to access critical services, take their children to school and contact law enforcement. She said passing the bills would change that.

► Read More: Nashville immigrants live in fear, make plans for deportation

One mixed-status immigrant family also spoke on the courthouse steps, begging the Metro government to take steps to keep their family together. And Sledge nearly wept as he spoke of a child he said is no longer sure of where he'll go to school next year or whether he and his family will be able to stay in the U.S.

Briley called the bills an opportunity to do something right.

"Your neighbors are calling for you," he said. "They are asking for your help. They are living in fear. Are you willing today to do anything in your power to protect them?"

Reach Ariana Sawyer at asawyer@tennessean.com and on Twitter @a_maia_sawyer.

Nashville's immigrant population

Nashville’s foreign-born population doubled in the 10 years between 2000 and 2010, from 58,539 to 118,126, becoming 7.4 percent of Nashville’s total population. That number has since increased to 12 percent, meaning more than one in every 10 Nashvillians was born outside the U.S.

There are about 33,000 undocumented Nashvillians.

The majority of the 11 million immigrants who entered the country illegally have lived in the U.S. for a decade or more.

Most have children and other family members who are U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents.

Entering the country illegally is a misdemeanor crime.

Staying in the country without a legal status is punishable by civil penalties and is not a criminal offense under the law.

About 30 percent of Metro Schools' student population from the 2015-16 school year — or just over 25,300 children — learned English as a second language. Spanish is the most commonly spoken language after English.

Source: Human Rights Watch, Pew Research Center, Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, Metro Nashville Public Schools