Philadelphia's ambitious plan to scare off ICE

[marmar]

Philadelphia’s ambitious plan to scare off ICE
City leaders know how to shield the community — if the mayor has the guts

By Amanda Marcotte
Senior Writer
Published January 28, 2026 6:45AM (EST)


(Salon) After weeks of the Department of Homeland Security terrorizing the people of Minneapolis by sending armed goons into the community under the guise of “immigration enforcement,” the political blowback against the operation is clearly bothering Donald Trump. The shooting deaths of two peaceful locals who were protesting the invasion of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol agents has led the White House to attempt to create the appearance of backing off. On Monday night, “commander at large” Gregory Bovino was pushed out of his role, even though his abuse of the city clearly came at the express wishes of Trump and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller.

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As a resident of Philadelphia, I can attest that the entire city is worried that we’ll be next in the barrel. ICE has already been on the ground, grabbing immigrants and scaring people. But locals are also terrified the city will soon be singled out for a full-scale invasion like Minneapolis is experiencing. Trump has always spoken of Philadelphia with deep contempt, and folks haven’t forgotten his repeated efforts to stop the vote counting here in 2020 as part of his concerted effort to steal the presidential election from Joe Biden.

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On Tuesday, Landau and Working Families Party council member Kendra Brooks unveiled an ambitious plan to shield the city from ICE and empower local law enforcement to arrest federal agents who descend on the city with ill intent. Under the “ICE Out” legislation,

* Federal officers would be banned from obscuring their identity with face masks and required to wear badges;
* City services, including police, would be prohibited from cooperating with ICE or providing them data on residents;
* ICE agents would be banned from any city property — including courts, schools and hospitals — without a judicial warrant;
* And public services and private businesses would be prevented from refusing service based on immigration status.

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For months, activists have been demanding more support from city leadership, explained Elias Siegelman, an activist who works with No ICE Philly, which meets in the quintessentially Pennsylvanian location of a Quaker meeting house. He asserted that local law enforcement should do more “to push back against this invasion, to stand up for Philadelphians.” While the anti-ICE activists appreciate tough talk from Krasner and Sheriff Rochelle Bilal — both of whom recently warned they will “arrest” ICE agents who break local laws — the group is dismayed at what they see as a lack of concrete preventive action. .............(more)

https://www.salon.com/2026/01/28/philadelphias-ambitious-plan-to-scare-off-ice/