“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me…”
— from a poem by Emma Lazarus, engraved on a plaque and installed in the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty in 1883.
Sitting in the Archuleta County Admin building yesterday, April 2, during the Board of County Commissioners’ work session, a couple of staff reports sounded worthy of reporting — a presentation on recent IT Department achievements by Gabe Cersonsky, and a discussion of some planned road maintenance by Public Works Director Mike Torres, that could potentially save the County taxpayers millions of dollars, over the short haul.
But following those reports, the commissioners began discussing a draft resolution, and I sensed we had hit upon a topic that many people in Archuleta County might have strong feelings about.
That topic being, the potential future arrival of immigrants. In particular, immigrants from south of the border, by way of Colorado’s Front Range.
The draft resolution had been submitted for consideration by Commissioner Warren Brown, and bore this title:
RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF ARCHULETA COUNTY, COLORADO DECLARING ARCHULETA COUNTY AS A NON-SANCTUARY COUNTY
The first five paragraphs:
WHEREAS, Archuleta County supports legal immigration into the United States; and,
WHEREAS, Archuleta County recognizes the plight of those seeking refuge and asylum from oppressive governments in other parts of the world; and,
WHEREAS, Archuleta County respects the history of the United States as a beacon of freedom and opportunity in the world; and,
WHEREAS, the City of Denver, with a population of 713,000 people, has declared itself a sanctuary city and has served more than 37,000 migrants at a cost of $38 million and growing; and,
WHEREAS, the saturation of the urban Colorado resources to support illegal immigrants has already led to some dispersion into rural areas of Colorado and creates the possibility of groups arriving in Archuleta County…
Starts out great, talking about the generous spirit of America. Then it takes a rather ugly turn.
The draft resolution was discussed at some length. You can download it here, understanding that it’s only a draft.
Archuleta County is already a ‘Sanctuary County’ — along with over four dozen other Colorado counties — if we are talking about objecting to Colorado’s ‘red flag’ law. In April 2019, County Attorney Todd Weaver presented a resolution declaring Archuleta County to be a ‘Second Amendment Preservation County’ and affirming its support for the County Sheriff and whatever decisions he makes (regardless of whether they are good decisions?)
That 2019 ‘Sanctuary County’ resolution commits the Board of County Commissioners to resist any actions that restrict the Second Amendment rights of the citizens of Archuleta County and demands the legislature to address the real and fundamental challenges of mental illness in our communities. Then-Commissioner Steve Wadley moved to approve the resolution and then-Commissioner Alvin Schaaf seconded the motion. Commissioner Ronnie Maez joined his fellow commissioners in approving the resolution unanimously.
In my opinion, and in the opinion of some others, that 2019 ‘Sanctuary County’ resolution — which you can download here — accomplished little, in terms of protecting the rights of an Archuleta County citizen to possess firearms while undergoing a mental health crisis or while involved in a domestic violence situation. Our Sheriff, Mike Le Roux, is sworn to obey the Colorado Constitution and Colorado law… and Colorado law specifically requires the Sheriff and his staff to enforce ‘red flag’ judgments issued by a court of law.
The draft resolution discussed yesterday, meanwhile, also suggests a effort to protect Archuleta County citizen, but not against gun violence. It purports to protect us from migrants, both documented and undocumented.
While ‘Sanctuary Cities’ like Denver, Aurora, and Boulder have opened their arms to people escaping violence and oppression in Central America, and while a dozen Colorado counties have declared themselves to be ‘Sanctuary Counties’, the draft resolution discussed by the Archuleta BOCC tries to do the very opposite… by declaring itself a ‘Non-Sanctuary County’.
According to my understanding, a sanctuary city — or county — is a jurisdiction that limits its cooperation with federal immigration enforcement to make sure undocumented immigrants feel safe to report crimes, access public services, and otherwise engage with their local government. Sanctuary cities typically do not allow local law enforcement to detain people solely on the basis of an immigration violation, or to provide ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) with access to interview individuals in jails or prisons. This makes it easier for undocumented immigrants to report crimes and access services without fear of deportation.
In Colorado, all counties are subject to federal immigration law. However, many local jurisdictions have adopted policies that limit their cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. These policies vary from place to place and include things like not honoring ICE detainers, not allowing ICE access to jails and prisons, not asking about a person’s immigration status, and not reporting suspected undocumented immigrants to ICE.
Rather than delineating specific actions, the draft ‘Non-Sanctuary’ resolution discussed yesterday seems to be trying, in vague terms, to discourage immigrants from entering Archuleta County.
To wit:
THEREFORE…
…Archuleta County declares that it is NOT a sanctuary county and will not open shelters or provide services, other than emergency services, to uninvited migrants and/or illegal immigrants that may arrive in unincorporated Archuleta County. Archuleta County will continue to prioritize the needs of our local citizens…
This is a strange statement. Does the BOCC believe their staff is able to identify a random visitor coming into Archuleta County as “an uninvited migrant” and then deny them services? What, exactly does “uninvited” mean? I have the impression that tens of thousands of visitors arrive in Archuleta County each summer, without having received a formal invitation.
To understand more about this draft resolution, and its chances of affecting the arrival of “migrants an/or illegal immigrants” in any meaningful way, we really ought to listen to yesterday’s BOCC discussion.