SLO COUNTY INDIVISIBLES CONDEMN ICE SURGE AND DEMAND ACTION TO PROTECT IMMIGRANT FAMILIES

The California ICE surge is already here. Indivisible San Luis Obispo Coalition condemns the escalation across San Luis Obispo County and calls on local and state officials to protect immigrant families, confront intimidation, and ensure transparency and accountability for local cooperation with ICE.

ICE Out of SLO County has documented nine confirmed kidnappings during the current surge, including people taken in San Luis Obispo, San Miguel, Oceano and Nipomo, as well as kidnappings in connection with releases from the County Jail. Families across this county are facing the consequences now.

ICE kidnappings are not new here. This surge expands the threat to people going to work, taking their children to school, and carrying out ordinary daily responsibilities.

News coverage describes the statewide crackdown as “Operation Safe California” and indicates that it targets undocumented people regardless of criminal history. Calling it “safe” does not make our communities safer. There is nothing “safe” about this action. It is dangerous and likely illegal.

Our immigrant neighbors should be able to leave home without fearing that their families will spend the evening trying to find them. Children should be able to count on their parents returning. No claim of public safety excuses racial profiling, intimidation, or the denial of due process.

“Calling this ‘public safety’ is an insult to every family afraid that someone they love will be taken by ICE. We are furious, and we expect our elected officials to do something about it. Sheriff Parkinson’s assurances do not protect a single family. The Board’s restrictions mean nothing unless they are enforced. Open the records. Explain the cooperation. Use the authority you have. People in this county are being taken, and we are done accepting excuses.”

— Dr. Cindy Lewis, Co-Leader, Indivisible North SLO County

This surge creates conditions for voter suppression before Election Day. Its timing ahead of the November 3 election, alongside rhetoric linking immigrants to election fraud, raises serious concerns about intimidation of eligible voters in mixed-status families and targeted communities.

An eligible voter may have an undocumented spouse, parent, or sibling. Fear for that person can affect whether the voter feels safe leaving home, approaching public institutions, or participating in an election. Intimidation does not have to occur at a polling-place door to suppress a vote.

We reject the use of immigrant communities as political targets. We reject efforts to turn hostility toward our neighbors into political support or use false claims about noncitizen voting to cast doubt on legitimate elections.

Protecting the right to vote requires confronting the fear that can keep people from exercising it.

Sheriff Ian Parkinson, the Board of Supervisors, and state officials must answer for the decisions within their control. The surge makes scrutiny of local cooperation with ICE more urgent.

The Sheriff must provide records and clear answers about ICE access to the jail, information sharing, and release notifications. The public deserves to know whether local practices are helping ICE take people who are supposed to be returning to their families.

The Board must account for how restrictions on ICE’s use of county property and resources are being enforced. State officials must investigate documented concerns about local cooperation and enforce California’s protections.

Claims of compliance do not substitute for transparency. Residents have a right to examine those claims against the record.

The Indivisible San Luis Obispo Coalition stands with our immigrant neighbors, ICE Out of SLO County, and the organizations responding to this surge and the ongoing threat of ICE kidnappings. Through our coalition groups, we will continue monitoring local cooperation with ICE, urging county officials to do more to protect our communities, and connecting affected families with rapid-response and support resources. We demand enforcement of restrictions on ICE’s use of county property and action to stop local practices that facilitate these kidnappings.

The people documenting raids, answering hotline calls, and helping families cannot carry this responsibility alone. Our elected officials must act with the urgency this escalation demands. Either officials care about every member of our community or they do not. Their response tells us which it is.

To report ICE activity: Call or text 805 UndocuFund’s 805 Immigrant Rapid Response Network at 805-870-8855. The hotline operates 24 hours a day. Information about reporting, alerts, and assistance for affected families is available at 805UndocuFund.org.

For further details on the surge, documented incidents in San Luis Obispo County, community resources, local actions, and concerns about the Sheriff’s cooperation with ICE: ICEOutofSLOCounty.org.

INDIVISIBLE SAN LUIS OBISPO COALITION

• Cambria Indivisible
• Estero Bay Indivisible
• Indivisible Avila Beach
• Indivisible Nipomo
• Indivisible North SLO County
• Indivisible Rapid Response Team SLO

IndivisibleSLOCoalition.org