A week before the presidential inauguration, Room 416 in City Hall overflowed with more than a hundred city officials, nonprofit leaders, attorneys, and immigrants — all prepared to discuss San Francisco’s plans to protect its most vulnerable communities against looming federal threats.
Hosted by the city’s Immigrant Rights Commission in partnership with the Office of Civic Engagement and Immigrant Affairs (OCEIA), the meeting was designed to “build power, not panic” and inform the commission’s recommendations to city leaders. For hours, they discussed established resources, city leaders’ commitments to uphold the city’s sanctuary ordinance, and the critical needs still unmet.
Although national sentiments about immigration have shifted rightward, San Francisco leaders say they’re still committed to protecting the rights of their undocumented communities. Since Trump was elected last November, nonprofits and city organizations have reignited collaborations, held dozens of meetings, and organized workshops, steadily preparing tactical and symbolic strategies to defend immigrant rights.
With promises of mass deportations looming, seasoned attorneys and city officials acknowledged that difficult times are coming for undocumented immigrants. But, they say they’re also familiar with Trump’s playbook and have a better understanding of how to successfully fight back.
“We are expecting a flurry of harmful, divisive, and illegal executive orders to be signed later today,” City Attorney David Chiu said in a statement following Trump’s inauguration. “[We] will do everything in our power to protect San Francisco and our residents from illegal federal action.”
Upholding San Francisco’s role as a sanctuary city
San Francisco’s sanctuary city ordinance prohibits city workers from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement, such as ICE, unless legally required. A critical part of the city’s political identity, the ordinance has been publicly reaffirmed by officials in recent days to remind residents of its protections.
“We want people to still utilize our hospitals, our clinics, and our local resources that are available to still report crimes,” said OCEIA Director Jorge Rivas. “We want to ensure that our local city services are still safe to use.”
Notably, as her first piece of legislation as District 9 Supervisor, Jackie Fielder introduced a resolution on Jan. 14 reaffirming San Francisco’s sanctuary ordinance. The resolution was co-sponsored by all 10 other members of the Board of Supervisors.
“In general, there’s just a feeling of anxiety about the future,” Fielder told El Tecolote. “And it’s my belief that silence from elected officials only stokes that anxiety.”
During the campaign trail, Trump threatened to withhold federal funding from sanctuary cities. Representatives from San Francisco’s City Attorney’s office say they’re prepared to sue the administration if necessary, as they successfully did during his first term.
“We have already litigated this issue and we won,” said Deputy City Attorney Mollie Lee.
Building up legal and nonprofit coalitions
San Francisco’s sanctuary ordinance doesn’t prevent federal agents from conducting immigration raids in the city. However, a large network of legal aid providers says they are ramping up to defend anyone who needs legal representation.
“This time, we are better equipped, with resources that were not available in prior years,” said Pilar Eslava, the Legal Director of La Raza Centro Legal’s Immigration Department.
La Raza Centro Legal is one of many nonprofits around the Mission District that are coming together through coalitions that provide training, briefings, and shared resources.
Eslava said attorneys from different organizations have also established a coordinated system to provide immediate legal representation for those in detention, rotating on-call duties. More than 20 organizations are part of the San Francisco Rapid Response Network, which connects immigrants to emergency representation and lets people report ICE activity through their 24-hour hotline: (415)-200-1548.
“Our collective goal is to ensure that no one faces these challenges alone,” Eslava told El Tecolote.
Francisco Ugarte, who heads the San Francisco Public Defender’s office, said that detained noncitizens are often unaware of their rights, emphasizing the need to increase funding for legal groups offering free representation.
“Ensuring that every immigrant facing deportation has access to a lawyer in the strongest terms is essential to resisting mass deportation,” he said.
Grassroots efforts to support the immigrant community
Through workshops and panels, community leaders have also turned their focus to educating immigrants about their rights and what to do if they’re approached by immigration officials.
At a recent workshop hosted by the Day Laborer Program in the Mission District, dozens of workers listened as presenters explained the rights they could invoke in case they were detained by ICE. The group reflected on recent raids in Bakersfield and how many immigrants who stayed silent were able to avoid deportation.
“We leave a bit more relaxed and a bit more calm,” one woman shared during the group’s closing reflection circle. “We have more people on our side.”
Some legal aid nonprofits, like Carecen SF, have taken to Instagram to share know-your-rights presentations, while others are distributing small red cards that immigrants can hand to federal officials to invoke their Fourth Amendment rights.
Meanwhile, artists are also mobilizing to change harmful narratives and create safe spaces. At Saturday’s protest in the Mission, hundreds of people danced and chanted in support of immigrant rights, holding freshly created prints and performing music inspired by the moment.
Looming challenges
Despite the united front, many nonprofit leaders say San Francisco must invest more funding into resources for immigrants and do more symbolically to affirm its commitments.
The city currently faces a 1,200-person waitlist for deportation defense, while many immigrants also struggle to meet basic needs like housing.
To address the waitlist, legal groups say they are prioritizing cases by hearing dates and offering educational services to bridge the gap. Although the city has increased funding for legal defense groups, Eslava says much more is needed to increase attorney capacity.
Yet many fears extend beyond the city’s control, including attacks on DACA protections and restrictions on legal immigration pathways.
“I’ve made most of my life here. San Francisco is my home,” said Sarah Souza, a member of the Immigrant Rights Commission and a DACA recipient. “I don’t have anywhere else to go. And I’m very concerned about any backlash towards my community.”
Still, nonprofit and city leaders emphasized that months — and an entire past presidency — of preparation will make a difference.
“I think it’s valid for people to have fear,” said Lucia Obregón, an Immigrant Rights Commissioner and director of the San Francisco Latino Parity and Equity Coalition. “But I think that we also have to realize that there is a huge network here and that there are a lot of people that care and are ready to fight.”