(KRON) — Immigration rights activists gathered in Sonoma County on Saturday to protest local officials’ alleged cooperation with ICE, calling for stronger protections for immigrant communities.
The activists, including veterans, community leaders, and educators, accused Sheriff Eddie Engram and Supervisor Lynda Hopkins of collaborating with ICE, following reports of meetings to expand information sharing about detainees.
“I didn’t survive three war zones to live in one,” said Nathan Kempthorne, a Sonoma County veteran, emphasizing the threat he perceives from ICE’s presence.
Rev. Beverly Spears declared, “We are here to be the moral voice in the face of immoral actions of an immoral government.”
Renee Saucedo warned, “Don’t you dare come to our grape fields and terrorize our farm workers here in wine country.”
Dr. Michael Hale noted, “What we are seeing is that while it creates fear it is not creating the panic that they are so hoping for because we believe in power not panic.”
The Press Democrat reported that Sheriff Engram had a face-to-face meeting with ICE to discuss easing limits on information sharing about detainees in county jail.
Supervisor Lynda Hopkins reportedly asked ICE not to target people seeking social services, referencing an incident where a man was arrested in the lobby of the county probation department.
Linda Evans from Migrant Justice in Action highlighted the urgency of the situation, stating, “This is a critical moment, there is great urgency regarding the cooperation with our sheriff with ICE and our county is not responding as if it were the emergency that it is.”
Activists are urging Sonoma County leaders to establish ICE-free zones and declare a state of emergency, emphasizing the need for immediate action to protect vulnerable communities.
All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by KRON4. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat from a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by KRON4 staff before being published.
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