Today, in response to the inauguration of Donald Trump, The FREE SF Coalition - including Asian Law Caucus, Causa Justa::Just Cause, CA Immigrant Youth Justice Alliance, CA Immigrant Policy Center, Dolores St. Community Services, La Raza Centro Legal, and Pangea Legal Services - issued the following statement. The coalition is joining a national wave of protest and resistance to oppression today.
Today we face a stark reality: a new federal government where hateful, oppressive forces hold most of the levers of power. Discrimination and exploitation are on the rise. But here in the streets of San Francisco, vibrant communities are also rising, uniting in solidarity to fight for a better world for all.
FREE SF pledges to passionately defend San Francisco's powerful Due Process for All and Sanctuary Ordinances. Won by the courage of immigrant community members themselves, these policies recognize immigrants' deep community roots and protect vital civil liberties for all. And they boldly project our values of equality, freedom, and common humanity to the nation and to the world.
We know that to fuel mass deportation, the federal government will double-down on the demonization of immigrant community members - our loved ones and neighbors - who have had arrests or convictions. Against the rhetoric of division and scapegoating, we must never lose sight of the sacred principle that all people are created equal. We must acknowledge that too many people caught up in the justice system are in fact victims of racial profiling, criminalization, and disparate treatment. And as we work to challenge mass incarceration, we must never turn away from rehabilitation and redemption.
The fight to uphold Sanctuary and Due Process is part of a larger movement. We stand proudly with immigrant communities, undocumented communities, Latinx communities, Black communities, API communities, LGBTQ communities, Muslim communities, working people, people demanding police accountability, and all San Franciscans committed to justice.
Together, we must work to achieve the true "sanctuary" of economic, social, and racial justice for all.