To: Mayor Wu and Members of the Wichita City Council RE Wichita Trust and Safety resolution

We need you to stand with us and show a firm commitment to keeping 287(g) agreements out of Wichita. These agreements expand ICE’s reckless policing practices, don’t make us any safer, and drive chaos and disorder on our streets in Wichita. City Council Members are expected to introduce a resolution that commits to keeping Wichita free from these agreements during an upcoming council meeting (we will keep you updated when we have a firm anticipated date)! It’s important that City Council Members vote in favor of having this resolution put on agenda and then adopt this resolution when it comes before them. We believe that they will do so with your support. In other words, we need you to be at this meeting! At this time, we are only asking you to show up, not to provide public comment. We are counting on your presence to send a message to City Council Members that Wichita residents have their back when it comes to keeping ICE’s lawlessness out of our city. Event Details: Meet us in the hallway outside of the council meeting room prior to the meeting. We will give you a sticker or button to show your support.

Across the country, legislators and policymakers have attempted to crack down on illegal immigration by contracting with local law enforcement to enforce immigration policy. But being undocumented is not a crime, and local law enforcement have no obligation to help the federal government enforce immigration law. However, dozens of sheriff’s offices across the country—including two in Kansas—spend local resources and collaborate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to identify, detain, and turn over noncitizens for deportation. One way ICE enlists local law enforcement is through the 287(g) program, a set of agreements that deputize local officers to perform immigration enforcement functions, primarily in jails. Since their inception, 287(g) agreements have given rise to racial profiling, civil rights violations, and breakdowns in community relations. Nevertheless, the Trump administration dramatically expanded the program, with no signs of a rollback under the Biden administration. As a result, 287(g) agreements continue to disrupt communities and fuel racism and xenophobia in Kansas and around the country.

ACLU of Kansas is launching Opportunity Forward, a new campaign focused on building a Kansas where everyone has the opportunity to thrive. The campaign brings together three priorities that are central to our vision for a more just and equitable state: preserving in-state tuition, limiting 287(g) agreements, and preventing issuance of ICE detainers.