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CNN
2 days ago
- General
- CNN
Washington called itself a sanctuary city. Then Trump came back to town
Immigration Donald Trump Immigration politicsFacebookTweetLink Follow The sky is still dark and the sidewalks are eerily empty when Soledad heads to work. The sound of sparrows chirping on a rainy morning is punctuated by the occasional crackle of tires rolling on wet pavement. The city is still waking up. Soledad is, too, walking in the drizzle to a bus stop near her apartment. In about 30 minutes, she'll punch in and begin her day working as a janitor in a government building where she keeps bathrooms and kitchens clean. A short bus ride from her neighborhood leaves just enough time to grab a quick cup of coffee before her shift begins. At a downtown DC bakery, the cashier flashes a warm smile when she recognizes Soledad walking in. '¿Como está?' she asks. How are you? Soledad pauses. So many worries are weighing on her. 'Pues, aquí,' Soledad says. Well, I'm here. Because yes, she is here, in a city where she's lived for more than two decades. But she doesn't know how much longer she will be. Soledad has what's known as Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, which provides legal work permits and blocks the government from deporting her and many other immigrants who otherwise would be undocumented. That protection's days could be numbered; already the Trump administration has said it plans to end TPS for hundreds of thousands of people. Before long, Soledad fears TPS for Salvadorans like her could be next. She agreed to share her perspective with CNN, but asked to be identified only by her first name, and for her face not to be shown, because she fears speaking out could affect her case. Reminders of the looming threats are everywhere. As she walks from the bus stop to her janitor job, Soledad often passes the White House, where President Trump and administration officials have made no secret of their mass deportation plans. And at a recent meeting of local activists, the 49-year-old Salvadoran immigrant says she posed a question she'd never expected to ask: 'Is Washington a sanctuary city, or isn't it?' 'It makes you feel like you've been left alone, like you've been abandoned.' —Soledad, a Salvadoran immigrant who's lived in DC for more than 20 years During the previous Trump administration, DC's leaders were vocal about protecting immigrant residents. Lately, Soledad says, their silence has spoken volumes. 'It makes you feel like you've been left alone, like you've been abandoned,' Soledad says. There's not one official definition for 'sanctuary city,' and different governments have different meanings for the term. Some see the label as more of a symbolic gesture than a move that actually impacts people's lives. But immigrant rights advocates have long argued that local officials play a critically important role. A city policy can be the difference between someone simply getting a traffic ticket or ending up in deportation proceedings. 'Right now the immigrant community has two ways to defend ourselves. One is the courts, and the other one is local officials,' says Jaime Contreras, executive vice president of the Service Employee International Union's 32BJ Capital Area District. 'And if local officials are running away from our community, that…has a devastating effect.' Nearly one in four residents of Washington and its surrounding metro area are immigrants, according to Census data. And in the past, Mayor Muriel Bowser frequently called Washington a 'proud sanctuary city.' 'In November, I reaffirmed Washington, DC's status as a sanctuary city, and now we are doubling down,' Bowser said in January 2017, just days before Trump's first term began. Her comments were part of an announcement of $500,000 in grant funding for legal work helping immigrants in the district. And for years, a press release with the quote was archived on the city's website. Now that page is gone, along with several others that used the 'sanctuary city' term. Asked about the pages' apparent removal in recent months, first reported by Axios, a spokesman for the mayor referred to her remarks in a February press conference but declined to comment further. At that event, when asked by a reporter why she'd stopped using the term 'sanctuary city,' Bowser called the phrase 'misleading.' 'I think it's misleading to suggest to anyone that if you're violating immigration laws, this is a place where you can violate immigration laws,' she said. 'You are vulnerable to federal immigration enforcement.' Asked what message she'd send to undocumented immigrants in the city, Bowser instead offered what sounded more like a response to conservative critics. 'We don't have a migrant crisis in our city, so I don't want anybody to think that we have been overrun and we have a migrant crisis, because we don't,' she said. Bowser's shifting response on immigration matters is one of a number of ways the mayor, a leading figure in the Democratic resistance during Trump's first term, is now striking a less defiant tone. The changing approach comes as Trump repeats attacks on DC and its leadership, threatening to 'take over' the city. The mayor has a good reason to tread carefully, according to Abel Nuñez, executive director of the Central American Resource Center in Washington, an organization that serves the city's Latino community. 'There's no reason to poke the bear. … You have to choose what your battles are.' —Abel Nuñez, executive director of the Central American Resource Center in Washington DC's status as a federal district puts the city and its more than 700,000 residents in a uniquely precarious position, Nuñez says. In 1973, Congress passed a statute allowing DC residents to elect local leaders to run day-to-day affairs, but lawmakers have threatened to reverse that arrangement. 'That can be taken away at any moment. We get treated like children. That's just the reality of it,' Nuñez says. 'We're allowed to manage our own affairs until they don't see fit for us to do so.' And no leader would risk her city's entire future for one group, he says. 'There's no reason to poke the bear. … You have to choose what your battles are. Dying on the hill of the 'sanctuary city' moniker, I don't think that's the right thing to do. I agree with the mayor,' Nuñez says. 'You need to tone it down, shut down the website, do the things you need to do so that you can quietly negotiate.' But some advocates for immigrants are more critical. Contreras, who represents thousands of cleaners, security officers and maintenance workers at the SEIU, says workers will remember their local leaders' actions the next time elections come around. 'Some of these elected officials…benefitted for years from having the support of a certain community, the immigrant community, in particular,' he says. 'And then, when it comes time to defend our community, they run away from the issue as opposed to leaning in and saying, 'Wait a minute, these are human beings, these are workers, these are not criminals.' They run away from us, and that is frustrating and insulting.' And for immigrants in the community, the impact isn't just emotional, he says. 'It has a devastating effect on how they go about their day. They have to be looking over their shoulders all the time. They see a police officer, they get scared. They see a crime, they're not going to report it. For safety reasons, it's just not good,' he says. Minutes after stepping to the podium earlier this month for his final press conference as DC's interim US attorney, Ed Martin said he had a warning for the city's citizens. The district's status as a sanctuary city is 'crippling' local law enforcement efforts to make DC safer, Martin said. 'There needs to be a robust discussion now about DC's sanctuary status, and its justice system and its judges, and if that means that home rule is on the table, then so be it,' he said. In the past, DC officials have used the sanctuary city term to describe things like the Metropolitan Police Department's policy of not asking people about their citizenship or residency status, or city funding for immigrant legal services. In 2020, the City Council passed a 'Sanctuary Values Amendment Act,' which limits the city's Department of Corrections from cooperating with federal immigration authorities 'absent a judicial warrant or order issued by a federal judge.' Many of the largest cities in the country have sanctuary policies in place. Supporters of the measures argue they keep communities safe by fostering trust between immigrant communities and law enforcement. Critics — including President Trump — say they endanger public safety. The second Trump administration has made cracking down on sanctuary cities a pillar of its enforcement strategy, with the president calling them 'death traps' that protect criminals. A federal judge recently ruled against the administration's efforts to block federal funding to sanctuary cities, finding that portions of Trump's executive orders were unconstitutional. Meanwhile the Justice Department has threatened to prosecute state and local officials who resist the federal immigration crackdown. Republican leaders in Congress also have criticized sanctuary cities, most notably in a March hearing before a House committee, where lawmakers grilled mayors of prominent sanctuary cities: Boston, Chicago, Denver and New York. DC's mayor wasn't asked to appear. But officials have homed in on the capital's sanctuary policies in other ways. Trump's 'Making the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful' executive order, issued in late March, created a federal task force whose mission includes 'monitoring the district's sanctuary-city status and compliance with the enforcement of federal immigration law.' The order also calls for the task force to direct 'maximum enforcement' of federal immigration law, and to redirect available law enforcement resources 'to apprehend and deport illegal aliens in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.' And Republicans in the House and Senate have introduced legislation aiming to remove DC's sanctuary laws, arguing they have 'devastating, real-life consequences.' 'President Trump's efforts to enforce immigration laws should not be undermined by local leadership anywhere in the United States, let alone Washington, DC.' —Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tennessee As he introduced the Senate's version of the bill last month, Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tennessee, called DC's policies 'unconscionable.' 'President Trump's efforts to enforce immigration laws should not be undermined by local leadership anywhere in the United States, let alone Washington, DC,' he said. It wasn't long ago that many immigrants saw Washington as one of the safest places to live, according to Antonia Peña, who represents nannies, house cleaners and care workers as a leader of the DC chapter of Care in Action. The district's policies, including its minimum wage and its protections for workers, were among the best in the region, she says. 'And in terms of immigration, Washington has always been considered a sanctuary.' But now, she says, given the pressures DC is under from the federal government, many immigrants are starting to see the city differently. 'Washington right now is becoming the area with the least protection, legally speaking,' she says. 'And that is what we've been explaining to people, talking about it and accepting it in a way, because this is a huge impact under this administration, something that no one expected.' Already high costs were making many workers reconsider living in the city, she says. 'Now this is going to become one more reason to move out of DC,' she says. Just a few months into the new Trump administration, leaders of immigrant advocacy organizations in DC say fears are running high. 'The need is so big and the threats are so big. … I'm running out of resources, because we're tapped out,' says Rev. Julio Hernández of the Congregation Action Network. Recently, he says he's gotten calls about people who've been evicted because some landlords no longer want to rent to undocumented immigrants. Many are worried the district's police department could be federalized, he says, converting the officers who patrol communities into immigration agents. 'There is a big concern of what could come,' Hernández says. 'The feeling is, if there's more funding, then there will be a greater increase in immigration raids. And DC is a pretty easy target. … If they lose their self-rule, we feel there's an even bigger danger for the city and for its residents.' Protesters pack into a park for a rally in DC's Mount Pleasant neighborhood on a spring evening. Soledad is in the crowd. In the past, she might have joined the speakers on stage, sharing her story. But today, she's watching from the sidelines. Organizers of this protest told her they were worried noncitizens could be targeted for speaking out. So Soledad doesn't tell this crowd about the years she's spent fighting for immigrant rights, or about her 15-year-old daughter, a star student — and US citizen — who's often stood alongside her. Instead, she listens. Some speakers at the rally are wearing masks to protect their anonymity. 'With the silence of our elected officials, I feel they are giving away our rights.' A speaker at a recent protest pushing DC leaders to protect the city's sanctuary status 'How is it possible that being an immigrant in DC means living in fear?' one speaker asks. 'It wasn't until I moved to DC that I felt like I belonged in this country,' another says. 'With the silence of our elected officials, I feel they are giving away our rights. … We are the only people that can keep us safe.' Organizers and participants at this protest say DC's leaders should do more to fight back against Trump's immigration crackdown. 'We fought hard to create the sanctuary policies, and we're not going to let Congress eliminate them without a fight,' Oliver Merino of the Immigrant Legal Resource Center tells CNN affiliate WJLA. 'The community wants the mayor, the city council, to step up and to publicly say they will protect our sanctuary policies that keep our community safe.' An organizer onstage says that members of the City Council were invited to the event, but none of them showed up. One by one, each council member's name is read from a list, then their photo is taped to a railing onstage. 'Is he here or is he missing?' the organizer asks, craning her neck and looking out at the crowd like a sailor scanning the horizon. It doesn't take long for the crowd to answer: 'MISSING!' A few council members' photos fall off the railing in the evening breeze. 'Even the papers are scared,' someone quips in the crowd. Asked via email whether DC remains a sanctuary city, the offices of the city's 13 sitting council members didn't respond to CNN's request for comment. It's no surprise to find critics of the president's immigration crackdowns in DC. Trump won less than 7% of votes cast here in the last presidential election. But DC isn't like other liberal cities, according to Rick Su, a distinguished professor of law at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Many cities that get in standoffs over immigration with the federal government have states to protect them, he says. 'The funny thing and the scary thing is that DC is essentially…a creature of the federal government, of Congress, of the president,' Su says. Though it's unclear whether Congress really wants to take on the challenge of running the city again, Su says, lawmakers could pass another statute to retake control. Given that reality, Su says it appears the city's leaders are currently pursuing a policy he's dubbed 'silent sanctuary.' 'We can still do our thing,' Su says city leaders are likely thinking, 'as long as we keep a very friendly and…submissive public face.' Soledad walks in front of the Supreme Court carrying a tote bag emblazoned with the three red stars and two red stripes of DC's flag. She sets it down near the building's steps and pulls out several banners and a megaphone she's tucked inside. Soledad and dozens of others are holding a vigil to support Temporary Protected Status, which the Trump administration has said it's ending for hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans. In a matter of weeks, a Supreme Court decision will clear the way for the administration's plan to take effect while legal challenges over the matter continue in court. But on this evening in early May, Soledad and the other protesters say they're pushing to bring attention to their cause before it's too late. Even though it's been raining all afternoon, a sizeable crowd has gathered, and the sun is coming out. But many of those gathered are worried – not just about the court's looming decision, but about reports and rumors that have been swirling in the city all week. Homeland Security Investigations agents served more than 100 notices of inspection at businesses around the DC area. The agency said it was an effort to ensure compliance with immigration and employment laws. Bowser told reporters the district's police weren't involved, and that she was 'disturbed' by what she'd heard had unfolded. 'It appears that ICE is at restaurants or even in neighborhoods,' she said, 'and it doesn't look like they're targeting criminals. It is disrupting.' A coalition of immigrant advocacy groups slammed the mayor for appearing at an event with Trump while reports of the enforcement effort left immigrant communities in the city terrified. Soledad is worried ICE agents could show up at this protest, and she knows others are concerned about that, too. Recently she's been more cautious about speaking out. At a protest she attended earlier this month, she loaned out her megaphone to amplify someone else's voice. With each day that passes, though, she's growing more concerned about what could happen if she doesn't speak out than what will happen if she does. For her and so many others whose lives are at stake, she says, staying quiet simply isn't an option. She can't imagine being forced to abandon the life she's worked hard to build or having to take her daughter away from the only home she's ever known. 'Un pueblo únido jamás será vencido,' she shouts into the megaphone. A people united will never be defeated. Following her lead, the crowd repeats the popular protest mantra. Then Soledad belts out a less common line that's become her favorite chant: 'Un pueblo callado jamás será escuchado.' The people who are silent will never be heard. CNN's Gabe Cohen contributed to this report.
CNN
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CNN
American Music Awards reconocen trayectorias de Rod Stewart y Janet Jackson
Billie Eilish se coronó este lunes como la gran ganadora de la noche en los American Music Awards. En la ceremonia, se reconocieron las trayectorias de Janet Jackson y Rod Stewart.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Here Are All the Surprise Artists at Shakira's Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour (Updating)
Since launching her Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour in Brazil earlier this year, Shakira has surprised attendees by inviting a number of fellow hitmakers to join her onstage. From Grupo Frontera, Carlos Vives and Maluma — all three joined her in Latin America — to Wyclef Jean, Alejandro Sanz, Ozuna and Rauw Alejandro in the U.S. leg of the tour. More from Billboard Karol G Enters a New Era With 'Latina Foreva': Stream It Now Maria Becerra, Paulo Londra & XRoss' 'Ramen Para Dos' Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard Argentina Hot 100 Alejandro Sanz On How He Recovered His Love For Making Music All of the aforementioned have collaborated with her in the past, and for each guest, Shakira has penned heartfelt messages on social media. 'Sharing the stage with a longtime friend will always be a highlight,' she wrote about Wyclef Jean on Instagram, who joined her in New Jersey to perform 'Hips Don't Lie,' which spent two weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2006. With Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran Tour in full swing, Shakira was No. 1 on Billboard's Top Tours chart for March. She also led last February's list with $32.9 million but doubles her earnings on the newest update. According to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore, Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour earned $70.6 million from 11 reported shows. More than any act has grossed in any March since the charts launched in 2019. Shakira's Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour continues with upcoming stops in the U.S., including Chicago, Atlanta, Miami and Las Vegas. She'll then head back to Latin America for more concerts in Mexico and Peru. Here are all the surprise artists who have appeared at Shakira's Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran Tour, so far: The Mexican American tejano band joined Shakira at the top of her tour during a stop at Mexico City's Estadio GNP Seguros. 'Last night you guys made it epic!!! What a thrill when I welcomed Grupo Frontera on stage. I jumped up and down like a little girl! You guys rock,' Shakira wrote on Instagram. During the Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran stop in Medellín, Colombia, Shakira brought out local hero Maluma. Both rocked the stage singing their hit teamup 'Chantaje.' 'Thank you Maluma for singing with me this song that marked a milestone in the history of Latin music with three billion plays!!!! I would sing it with you one and a thousand times more!!!! I love you,' the Colombian star expressed on social media. Vives also joined Shakira during a stop in Medellín where the pair sang 'La Bicicleta.' 'Carlos Vives came to cheer me up even more with La Bicicleta!!!! Carlos you are a living legend!!! I love you my brother,' Shakira captioned a post on Instagram. Shakira launched the U.S. leg of Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran Tour with superstar Alejandro Sanz as surprise guest in Charlotte, N.C. where they sang their classic collab 'La Tortura.' 'Alejandro Sanz how they applauded you last night!!! A thousand years may pass with a thousand more but what happens to us on stage will continue to be unique,' Shakira wrote on Instagram. The Haitian rapper and singer joined Shakira to perform their 2005 smash 'Hips Don't Lie' during one of her shows at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. About their reunion onstage, Shakira wrote, 'Sharing the stage with a longtime friend will always be a highlight! Thanks for coming once again Wyclef Jean.' Ozuna stopped by the MetLife Stadium to sing 'Monotonía.' 'What an unforgettable first night at MetLife!! What a crowd!! ¡And Ozuna , you are incredible! Thanks for making this night even more magical,' the '(Entre Paréntesis),' singer captioned a social media post. Rauw Alejandro, also on tour, joined Shakira to perform their electrifying collab 'Te Felicito.' 'Rauw! What a way to close out two insane nights at MetLife stadium,' Shakira posted. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Palmeiras fans send international message with mosaic 🐷
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here. For those who understand well, it can be in any language. Palmeiras fans took advantage of the large audience of the game against Flamengo, in the Brasileirão, and displayed a mosaic at Allianz Parque written in English, with a clear reference to the recognition of the 1951 World Cup victory. Mosaico da torcida do Palmeiras no Allianz Parque. É a bandeira do Brasil e dos Estados Unidos, e um avião indo para os Estados de faixas com frases como; 'Lutaremos juntos', 'A história começou por nós em 1951'. — DataFut (@DataFutebol) May 25, 2025 The flags and the plane are clear references to Palmeiras' participation in the Club World Cup, in the United States, in June and July. The message is a reaffirmation that the victory in the International Champions Club Tournament of 1951, also known as the Rio Cup, is the first by a club at a global level in history.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump's ICE Detains U.S. Citizen, Claiming His REAL ID Was Fake
Amid President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials arrested and detained a Florida-born U.S. citizen, claiming his REAL ID was fake, Noticias Telemundo reported Friday. Law enforcement came to Leonardo Garcia Venegas' construction job in Foley, Alabama, on Wednesday. Before his arrest, he told NBC News, he was taking out his phone. One ICE agent threw it on the ground, and another grabbed him. 'I'm a citizen!' he said, according to video. 'He's a citizen, bro!' an onlooker yelled. Garcia Venegas, whose parents are from Mexico, told Noticias Telemundo that Immigration and Customs Enforcement said his REAL ID was fake. They detained him in a vehicle, where he gave officials his Social Security number. He was released hours later. 'They took out my wallet, took out my ID,' he told the outlet in Spanish, via The Latin Times. 'And they told me it was fake. Said it wasn't valid and that it was fake. My ID. They handcuffed me and they handcuffed me really tight.' 'I feel really sad, honestly, and I feel a bit nervous for everything that's happening,' he said. Immigration officials have arrested and deported thousands of people, making good on Trump's xenophobic campaign promises. Citizens have been deported, including at least two children with cancer. Trump has defied a judge by deporting people to a notorious prison in El Salvador. And earlier this week, he deported two Asian immigrants to South Sudan, violating a court order. 'He was actually pretty sore when he got back,' Garcia Venegas' cousin Shelah Venegas told NBC News. 'He said his arms were hurting and his hands. His wrists, you could see where he had all the marks from the handcuffs. … The way they put him on the ground, his knees also were hurting.' 'Apparently a REAL ID is not valid anymore. He has a REAL ID,' she said. 'We all made sure we have the REAL ID and went through the protocols the administration is asking for. … He has his REAL ID and then they see him and I guess because his English isn't fluent and/or because he's brown it's fake, it's not real.' A REAL ID is an identification card that can be used to fly and enter federal buildings. It has higher federal security standards than a driver's license. A rule went into effect earlier this month that travelers need a REAL ID or a passport in airports. ICE also detained Garcia Venegas' brother, who was not in the country legally. He reportedly signed deportation papers, wanting to avoid another family member's experience of spending months in a detention center. Garcia Venegas 'physically got in between agents and the subject they were attempting to arrest and refused to comply with numerous verbal commands,' Tricia McLaughlin, DHS assistant secretary, told NBC News. 'Anyone who actively obstructs law enforcement in the performance of their sworn duties, including U.S. citizens, will of course face consequences which include arrest.' Venegas said her family owns a contracting company, and some people are refusing to come to work in the current political climate. 'It's just insane we can't be different, the color that we are. We contribute to this country the same way every other citizen does with their taxes,' she said. 'But we have to be the ones that every time we go to work, we are going to be scared that we're going to get discriminated [against].' More from Rolling Stone Trump Brags to West Point Grads He Can Do Whatever He Wants Now Trump Tries to Make Sure States Don't Fight Climate Change Either Rubio Says Blocking Deportations to South Sudan Will Harm Humanitarian Aid Best of Rolling Stone The Useful Idiots New Guide to the Most Stoned Moments of the 2020 Presidential Campaign Anatomy of a Fake News Scandal The Radical Crusade of Mike Pence
