Despite President Trump's executive orders on immigration, Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey says the city will welcome immigrants
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Immediately after Monday's inauguration, President Trump issued a blitz of executive actions in hopes of reshaping our country's policies on immigration and refugees.
The actions included: tasking the military with border enforcement, designating cartels and gangs as terrorist groups, attempting to terminate birthright citizenship, and shutting down asylum and refugee admissions.
Pittsburgh is not currently a sanctuary city, despite past discussions in the city council. We asked Pittsburgh's Mayor Ed Gainey his thoughts on the recent executive actions.
"We want to make sure that when immigrants are here they feel welcome. We want to make sure that they know we want to provide services for them," said Mayor Ed Gainey.
He tells KDKA the city is working with local nonprofits to make sure people don't feel scared. He adds if immigration officers come to Pittsburgh, he does not anticipate Pittsburgh Police officers will work alongside them.
"We don't want no hate, we don't want no hate, we don't want no division, we don't want no evil, we want to make sure we're creating a city where everybody feels welcome," said Mayor Gainey.
The latest executive action regarding refugees means the local organization "Hello Neighbor" won't be welcoming any refugees for at least four months.
Founder and CEO Sloane Davidson said there's a distinction between refugees and undocumented immigrants and she fears its getting muddied.
She tells KDKA, that refugees are people forced to flee their homes and can't return. They don't cross borders but are flown into Pittsburgh from other countries.
"For the new President to pause the United States' refugee admissions program is unprecedented, and to me really signals that he doesn't trust the way that government has operated," said Sloane Davidson, founder and CEO of Hello Neighbor.
Davidson said 10 federal agencies have reviewed refugee candidates since President Jimmy Carter passed the bipartisan Congressional Act in 1980.
Davidson tells KDKA the refugee pause, plus talks of potential immigration raids, means she's having a lot of conversations with scared people.
"A lot of immigrant populations might come from countries where what the government says goes and people can be hauled off without due process," said Davidson. "And so, it causes a lot of fear. We, you know, as a Pittsburgher, I might say. Well, there are courts, and there's a process, and there's a balance of powers, and there'll be a lot that happens before someone gets picked up and deported. But for most of our new neighbors they have fear, regardless of where they are in the process and that makes me sad, and it also makes me angry for them to have to live with that fear when they shouldn't have to," said Davidson.
Davidson tells KDKA "Hello Neighbor" worked tirelessly to prepare and anticipated some kind of closure or pause in refugee admissions so they've been trying to accept as many people as they could through the formal federal program.