NEW YORK – Neighborhood Defender Service (NDS) stands in opposition to Mayor de Blasio’s plan to expand New York City’s cooperation with Immigration Control and Enforcement (ICE). The plan, announced last week, would increase the number of immigrants that the city turns over to ICE, and further undermine the city’s commitment to protecting immigrant families. NDS calls on Mayor de Blasio to reverse this decision immediately.
As a public defender operating in the heart of Northern Manhattan, NDS serves some of the most diverse communities in the country, and a significant percentage of our clients are non-citizens. This proposal is a direct threat to NDS clients, their families and the communities of Northern Manhattan.
“Any level of cooperation with President Trump’s deportation machine is incompatible with the ‘sanctuary city’ New York purports to be,” said Stephanie Lopez, Supervising Attorney of NDS’ Immigration Defense Practice. “That Mayor de Blasio proposes to expand the already unacceptable cooperation with ICE is horrifying and betrays the trust our neighbors and communities have placed in the city.”
NDS stands alongside activists, service providers, and elected officials in opposition to this plan. The mayor’s proposal stands against the values of a city that thrives on the contributions of its immigrant communities. Thankfully, there is still time for Mayor de Blasio to abandon this harmful proposal.
“It’s not too late for Mayor de Blasio to reverse course and abandon this misguided plan that will jeopardize our neighbors and further stoke fears within our community,” added Matt Knecht, NDS’ Managing Director. “The mayor has rightly acknowledged that ICE is a ‘broken’ agency. Any plan that would expand the city’s cooperation with ICE unnecessarily endangers our clients, their families, and the city, and should be discarded at once.”
Contact:
Sam McCann, Communications Specialist, NDS
Phone: (212) 316-7399
Email: smccann@ndsny.org