By Callee Ackland 

ICE raids in Oregon have surged this year, as part of a nationwide sweep that is inflicting widespread emotional trauma on immigrants and their loved ones. At least 26 Lane County residents were detained just in November, five of them arrested at the federal Bureau of Land Management office in Springfield while applying for foraging permits.

Local attorneys continue to report that agents at the Federal Building in Eugene are preventing detainees from meeting with lawyers, which is matched by ongoing reports of people across the country not receiving their constitutional rights to due process and legal representation. 

Just before its holiday recess, the Eugene City Council unanimously voted on Dec. 8 to set aside funds for future immigrant community support. The interim Eugene city manager is working over the holidays to draft a resolution acknowledging the crisis caused by ICE actions and reaffirming support for their immigrant communities. 

“We’re showing the community really where our values are,” said Councilor Lyndsie Leech, who introduced the resolution motion. “There’s no way that I can continue to be representative of our people in any capacity if I just let some of this stuff go.”

Springfield residents have requested similar recognition and support from their elected leaders as well. Twenty-six people spoke at the Dec. 1 Springfield City Council meeting, imploring the city to, among other things, declare a state of emergency and pass a sanctuary city resolution. 

“I’m not asking [City Council] to be on the front lines of our struggle. I’m asking you to acknowledge and use your privilege, as well to reassure the people, to reassure the children, to protect the people, to make an official statement and stand by it,” one speaker said. “We are people, and we deserve to be heard, to be seen, and to be supported.” 

Advocates also asked for real-time alerts when ICE raids are reported in the area. Coincidentally, Springfield city staff developed a “Springfield Emergency Response Application” (SERA) this year to enhance emergency response and serve the needs of residents. While the application lacks a community communication tool at this time, a city employee said it could be used for any number of different events and that it “can be adaptable to anything.”

After hearing these pleas from local residents ages 7 to 79, some through tears, Springfield City Council expressed weak condolences and then chose to take no immediate action or even issue a public statement before its winter break. The short-lived sympathies felt reminiscent of the never-ending “thoughts and prayers” that follow every mass shooting in this country. 

Now the city councilors have been safe and warm in their homes, celebrating the holidays with their loved ones, while some of their neighbors have been ripped from their families and many others are worried that they may be next.

Why didn’t the City Council do anything before their winter recess? Will they respond to constituent concerns when they return to work in January? 

Many of our neighbors are now scared to leave their homes to go to work, to school, to grocery stores and restaurants, to shop and travel. This weakens local businesses and threatens the economic stability of Springfield. For a city that prides itself on being so business-friendly, shouldn’t that matter to the city councilors who are facing difficult budget decisions in the year ahead? 

On Oct. 30, federal agents arrested 35 people in and around Woodburn, the area’s largest single-day immigration arrest total in recent history. Twenty-two days later, Woodburn City Council declared a state of emergency in response. Woodburn business owners and community leaders estimated a 50 percent to 80 percent decline in people downtown in November because of ICE activity. 

On Nov. 11, federal agents arrested 26 people in Salem. Twenty days later, Salem city councilors stood against harmful ICE activity by declaring a state of emergency. Their declaration directs city leaders to begin considering options to protect community members “in the face of harm and terror caused by ICE’s actions”. Salem City Council also voted to reaffirm the city’s support of state sanctuary law, which bars local governments from assisting federal immigration work. 

Hillsboro, Forest Grove, Cornelius and Washington County have also recently declared states of emergency over immigration enforcement actions. 

The city of Springfield demonstrated just last year how quickly they could issue a statement when faced with a natural disaster — even with widespread power outages and city hall shut down, they were able to declare a state of emergency three days into the ice storm. Why are they still silent about this humanitarian crisis now?

At the end of the day, will an emergency declaration prevent ICE from continuing to terrorize our community and rip families apart? No. But it’d be nice for our leaders to at least do a better job of acting like they care. 

Happy Holidays, Councilors. May your heart grow three sizes. 

Callee Ackland is a Springfield resident, political science student and Navy veteran.