L.A. Councilmember: We Don’t Know if People Are Being ‘Kidnapped’ by Feds or Copycats, But Know There’s Racism

During an interview with FOXLA on Tuesday, Los Angeles City Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez stated that ICE raids have “created an environment where people are getting abducted. There’s no question about it, and whether or not they’re being abducted and kidnapped by federal agencies or by copycats, we don’t know.” But we know the sanctuary policy has nothing to do with it, “It has everything to do with punitive action that is just targeting people of color.”

Rodriguez stated, “I think, sadly, with the way the federal government has approached these raids, they’re no longer even providing documentation, any judicial warrants. They’re rolling up fully masked with fatigues that, frankly, anyone can mimic. You saw what happened as a result of someone mimicking a police officer in Minnesota, and there are now people dead. I’ve seen circumstances where I can’t discern whether or not it was a copycat or where it was legitimate ICE agents rolling up on street vendors, where they ran off out of fear, and returned later. But, again, this has created an environment where people are getting abducted. There’s no question about it, and whether or not they’re being abducted and kidnapped by federal agencies or by copycats, we don’t know.”

Host Elex Michaelson then asked, “A lot of the folks that are against the idea of the sanctuary city policy say if the city and the state worked more with the federal government on this, you wouldn’t have those abductions, because you’d be able to handle this behind bars. Do you think it’s time to rethink the sanctuary policy?”

Rodriguez responded, “I think the reality is, is this has nothing to do with the sanctuary policy. It has everything to do with punitive action that is just targeting people of color. And that’s the bottom line.”

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