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<p>For those who wish to call in support of the CSA: Something as
simple as "I am calling to urge that the [city council pass/mayor
support passage of] the Community Safety Act in a form as similar
as possible to that supported by the Step Up Coalition as soon as
possible" should do it.</p>
<p>Calls should go to Mayor Elorza's office (401.421.2489) and to
the City Council. The number for the City Council is (401)521-7477
but you may also wish to email them. You can email the entire city
council at <a
href="http://council.providenceri.com/contact-city-council">council@providenceri.com</a>
--or you can email Aponte, the Council President at
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:Ward10@providenceri.com">Ward10@providenceri.com</a> and Hassett, the Chair of the Ordinance
Committee at <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:Ward12@providenceri.com">Ward12@providenceri.com</a> (if you know people in other
neighborhoods, direct them to
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://council.providenceri.com/members">http://council.providenceri.com/members</a> to find contact info for
their Councilperson and to
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://council.providenceri.com/efile/217">http://council.providenceri.com/efile/217</a> if they do not know
which ward they live in.</p>
<p>As to Itisa Costume's observations about the CSA, some of those
are based on a misunderstanding or misinterpretation of the
ordinance. For example, Costume objects to the translator
requirement on the grounds that police would be unable to question
anyone at a crime scene--but the CSA clearly permits questioning
without a translator in emergency situations. (Besides which, if
you've every had a conversation with someone who is not proficient
in English, you'd know that interrogating that person in a
language they don't speak is unlikely to produce much in the way
of valuable information, given that they won't even understand the
questions you have asked).</p>
<p>More importantly, Costume points out a section protecting
immigrants from inappropriate referrals to ICE and suggests this
is an "anti-Trump" provision. This is patently impossible, as the
CSA was drafted long before the 2016 election. In fact, the
initial version of the CSA was unveiled on June 19, 2014, after
many months of negotiations and discussions
(<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.facebook.com/events/283492315164997/?active_tab=about">https://www.facebook.com/events/283492315164997/?active_tab=about</a>).
This was before Trump even announced his candidacy for office, so
suggesting the language is "anti-Trump" is preposterous. Of
course, given Trump's (and RI Representative Corvese and his
colleagues') interest in deporting our friends, relatives, and
neighbors, this provision of the CSA has taken on importance its
drafters could not have foreseen.<br>
</p>
You might also want to know that the language has been adjusted and
modified in a number of ways over the years to address the needs of
city government and law enforcement. Indeed, some portions are
simply a formalization of existing policy, including the section on
immigration Costume objects to. As Providence Public Safety
Commissioner Pare recently stated
(<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://ripr.org/post/providence-police-will-not-act-immigration-officials-following-homeland-security-memo">http://ripr.org/post/providence-police-will-not-act-immigration-officials-following-homeland-security-memo</a>),
when local law enforcement works with ICE it "erodes trust between
police and city residents" and thus can result in more crime and
less safety for all residents.<br>
<br>
--Mikaila<br>
<br>
<div class="moz-signature">-- <br>
Mikaila Mariel Lemonik Arthur<br>
<a href="mailto:mmlarthur@gmail.com">mmlarthur@gmail.com</a></div>
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