As the Trump administration accelerates pressure on states and cities to cooperate with its immigration enforcement actions, many local leaders in sanctuary cities are holding their ground. These leaders say voluntary cooperation with U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement risks damaging relationships between elected and public safety leaders and their community members.

ICE workplace raids last week sparked ongoing protests in Los Angeles that are spreading to other cities. ICE agents arrested 118 people in Los Angeles, including, it said, five gang members and numerous “criminal aliens.”

Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin in a statement Monday accused California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass of caring “more about violent criminal illegal aliens than they do about protecting their own citizens.”

Bass, in a Sunday news conference, said the raids are creating a climate of “fear and chaos” in Los Angeles. “This impacts all of our city,” she said. “You can’t terrify the workplace [and the] workforce and then expect people to get the jobs done.”

Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell has reiterated that his department will continue to enforce the city’s ordinance prohibiting the use of city resources for federal immigration enforcement.

“We recognize that immigration enforcement operations can cause deep fear and anxiety, particularly in immigration communities,” McDonnell said during a Sunday press conference. “That’s why we’re committed to transparency, accountability and treating every Angeleno with respect regardless of immigration status. Our job is not to divide communities or politicize law enforcement. Our job is simply to keep everyone safe.”

In April, President Donald Trump signed an executive order threatening to cut off federal funding to cities — which he often calls “sanctuary cities” — that he said aren’t complying with federal immigration laws and directing U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem “to pursue all necessary legal remedies and enforcement measures to bring non-compliant jurisdictions into compliance.” While the term “sanctuary cities” has no official definition, it’s often used to describe cities that prohibit voluntary cooperation or information-sharing with immigration enforcement authorities.

Read the full article about sanctuary cities by Robyn Griggs Lawrence at Smart Cities Dive.