Hartford Areas Rally Together and
the Hartford Immigrant Rights Coalition ask you to
Come and speak in support of making
Hartford a city for all people!
Did you know that immigrant residents often don’t report when they are victims of crime or witnesses to crime because they fear that their immigration status will be questioned?
Did you know that many immigrant residents often do not report housing code violations out of fear that their immigration status will be questioned?
Attend the City Council Public Hearing on
Monday, July 21 at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall
(550 Main Street in Council Chambers on the 2nd floor) and speak out in support of an ordinance that ensures that all residents of Hartford have access to city services.
Do you want to live in a city where some residents feel safer than others?
Do you want to live in a city that welcomes people or discriminates against people?
Hartford is a city of immigrants. You decide.
For more information contact Tara at HART 525-3449.
Some Facts:
Hartford Immigrant Rights Coalition
We are a coalition of organizations in Hartford that is supporting the creation of a city ordinance that encourages all Hartford residents to utilize all city services regardless of their immigration status and requires that city departments serve all Hartford residents equally without inquiring about immigration status.
Why is this ordinance a good idea for Hartford?
Hartford is a city of immigrants. Residents in our city should not be concerned that they will be victims of discrimination by any city department simply because of their accent or because of their ethnicity.
There are many crimes in Hartford that go unreported by residents because of the concern that they will be asked their immigration status when reporting criminal activity.
If immigrant parents fear that they are at risk of deportation when they register their children for Hartford schools, they may not register their child to attend school.
Both legal and undocumented immigrant residents are less likely to cooperate with local law enforcement if they see that local police are asking about immigration status as a part of their regular duties.1
When crimes go unreported, all Hartford residents are at risk.
If Hartford residents trust that the local police and other city departments are focused solely on providing municipal services, they will be more likely to report if they are victims of crime or witness to a crime.
Immigrant residents spend money in our city. If immigrant residents are confident that their immigration status will not be in question every time they leave their homes, they will patronize local businesses. This is good for Hartford’s economy.
Hartford has limited resources for law enforcement and those resources need to be devoted to local law enforcement, not enforcement of federal civil immigration law.
Other U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago, Baltimore, Houston, New York, Boston and Philadelphia have set a precedent in that they publicly oppose local enforcement of immigration laws. None of the policies in these cities have ever been successfully challenged.2
The law enforcement community is clear that building trust and cooperation within immigrant communities is often difficult and complex. When local police are faced with also doing federal regulation or enforcement of immigration laws, trust is difficult if not impossible to maintain with immigrant communities.3
Hartford does have both legal and undocumented immigrant residents. Currently, there is no ordinance in place in our city that clarifies how the city will interact with immigrant residents as it relates to immigration status.
For more information contact Tara Parrish at HART 525-3449.
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