Immigration advocate Thomas Kennedy writes in his latest op-ed for New Times that “Miami voters are unhappy,” citing the election shift that ousted former Mayor Francis Suarez in favor of Eileen Higgins and replaced Joe Carollo with Rolando Escalona in the runoff. Disgust over heavy-handed immigration enforcement in South Florida weighed on voters, he writes.
In another op-ed, @tomaskenn argues that officials across Florida preemptively complied with 287(g) agreements, enabling local police to collaborate with ICE, though the law requires such agreements only from agencies operating county detention facilities. The City of Miami, he says, joined needlessly — and amid public outcry — despite not running a jail.
Read the full op-ed for the full impact of Miami’s decision at miaminewtimes.com (link in bio).
I spoke today at the City of Miami Commission against the mayor’s proposed municipal bond, which seeks approval for $450 million in funds largely towards police facilities.
I have concerns about its fiscal impact on our city and the continued role of Miami’s police department in immigration enforcement under the 287(g) agreement.
According to a state database, figures put out by the state of Florida, Miami is the city with the highest level of immigration encounters in the state. These figures are concerning, and city officials should clarify them.
Before asking residents to consider footing an additional $450 million, with which interest compounds to well over a billion dollars over time, the 287g contracts need to be addressed by this commission, and if commissioners won’t do it, Mayor Eileen Higgins has the power to fulfill one of her campaign promises by putting this item on a city commission meeting agenda for reconsideration.
The bond was ultimately deferred by a 4-1 vote against it.
At this week’s “Networking Breakfast with City of Miami Mayor Eileen Higgins,” a public event sponsored by @communitynewspapers Higgins and her chief of staff Maggie Fernandez blew off locals, including a Colombian immigrant who campaigned for Higgins and tried to express her concern that, after decades of living in the U.S., Miamians are being locked up and shipped away from their homes and families (the ICE Miami Field Office leads the nation in immigration arrests with 120 a day). Community Newspapers publisher Michael Miller @mmiller657 then ejected the guests despite the fact that they had confirmed RSVPs for the event.
While running for office and after first getting elected last year, @mayoreileenhiggins promised she would review the legal framework of the city’s 287(g) ICE collaboration agreement and insisted that local police should not be doing the job of federal immigration authorities, especially in our city of immigrants — where 58% of residents are foreign-born. Instead, Florida’s State Board of Immigration Enforcement database reveals that the Miami Police Department is the #1 city police agency in the state for immigration enforcement.
Word is that Alligator Alcatraz will be shut down and people detained will be moved out by first week of June. More than $900 million were spent on this detention center grift, a lot of it from Florida’s emergency response fund.
Swipe to see the video of Miami Mayor Higgins refusing to answer questions on the polimigra ➡️ Today, my colleagues tried to ask Democratic Mayor Eileen Higgins about the 287g agreements that the City of Miami is still participating in. Let’s be clear: 287g agreements are the creation of the poli-migra, and it’s ridiculous that we have a Dem mayor and the 287g agreements are still in effect. No matter who is in office, we will continue to advocate for and defend our communities.
#miami #cityofmiami #florida
Claims of personal assurances made to a single person in Miami’s FIFA Host Committee regarding no ICE at World Cup events are not credible. The administration needs to make a formal announcement of a moratorium of immigration enforcement. Also in Florida, our local police are deputized as immigration agents, so it’s not just an ICE issue.
New from me: According to Florida’s Dashboard tracking immigration enforcement encounters by authorities, Miami police is the eleventh highest in the state. Meanwhile City of Miami officials avoid rescinding the 287g police-ICE agreement they signed on to. Read on truthout.org
The lawmaker behind Florida’s new redistricting push couldn’t clearly explain her own bill ⁉️
During questioning, bill sponsor Representative Persons-Mulicka struggled to answer basic questions about how her proposal would redraw Florida’s congressional maps. This comes as lawmakers pass the mid-decade redistricting effort, something that will flip 4 Democratic seats, shifting to 24 GOP / 4 Dem seats.
When the people writing the maps can’t explain them, it raises a bigger question: who are these maps really for?
A group of labor unions and advocacy organizations in South Florida are urging the Miami FIFA World Cup Host Committee to enforce living wages, hire union vendors, and call for immigration protections ahead of the event. Video by the Miami Herald.
After a bill that would ban undocumented students from enrolling in public universities in Florida was defeated in the state legislature, the Florida Department of Education is trying to sneakily enact it through an administrative rule.
Helping to present a letter signed by 30 labor leaders and addressed to Miami’s World Cup Host Committee, urging them to meaningfully enforce labor, worker protection standards, and measures to protect immigrants.
