‘Sanctuary’ activists petition Ayotte to end state involvement with ICE

A group of advocates marched into Wednesday’s Executive Council meeting and handed a petition to Gov. Kelly Ayotte that urged state officials to withdraw from partnerships with federal immigration enforcement.

“We, the undersigned, are gravely concerned with the choices our state has made, when confronted with federal attacks on our democratic institutions and abuses of our neighbors and communities,” they said in the petition. “Instead of standing up and protecting Granite Staters from federal overreach, state leaders have opted to be complicit with egregious federal abuses.”

Local activists recently formed a network of “sanctuary communities” across New Hampshire, seeking to monitor and document activities by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and advocate against what they call “police-state tactics” by the Trump administration.

The petition handed to Ayotte by Megan Chapman of Albany asks county jails to resist federal contracts that would allow ICE to incarcerate people on immigration-related charges there. It also calls on law enforcement agencies to exit their existing contracts with ICE, which authorize local police to arrest and interrogate people for warrants on or suspected immigration violations. State police, four county sheriff’s departments, and seven local police departments have signed onto those agreements.

The petition also asks state leaders to repeal the ban on towns and cities from implementing “sanctuary” and “welcoming” policies, which are designed to keep local police from assisting federal immigration enforcement. Ayotte touted that bill’s passage earlier this year, saying those policies present a threat to the public by allowing “dangerous criminals” into communities.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the petition had garnered roughly 2,000 signatures online.

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