NEWARK, N.J. (AP) - The Democratic mayor said on Monday the election of Republican Donald Trump as president won’t change the way his city, the largest in the state, treats residents who are living in the country illegally.
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka said the city, which has about 280,000 residents, plans to continue its policy of arresting only those who engage in criminal activities.
“Newark already has a policy of protecting undocumented immigrants from deportation by U.S. immigration authorities,” Baraka said in a statement. “Despite the election of Donald Trump, we see no reason to change that policy.”
Later Monday, after a groundbreaking for a 22-story apartment building downtown, Baraka called wholesale deportations “not only a moral mistake but an economic mistake for the country at the same time. And definitely one for the city.”
Trump talked tough about immigration on the campaign trail, including proposing building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, using a deportation force and deporting the estimated 11 million people in the country illegally. He later distanced himself from those statements and, in an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes” broadcast on Sunday night, said he would focus on deporting people with criminal records beyond their immigration statuses.
Baraka used the example of a young man who works for him at City Hall.
“He’s not even 21, 22, he’s disabled, he’s from South America and he’s here because of a doctor,” Baraka said. “If that program goes away, he goes away. So he came to see me today, terrified. So I just wanted to give solace to him and other people in this community that we are not cooperating with these people.
“I just pray that there are people in the federal government on the congressional and Senate side who have some sense and know we can’t just wholesale throw people out of the country that contribute billions of dollars to the economy here.”
Newark last year established a municipal identification card program for most city residents, including those who are living in the country illegally. The cards provide access to vital city services, and nearly 10,000 have been issued.
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