PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — As President Trump ramps up talk of a “migrant caravan” filled with all manner of criminals marching inexorably to invade the United States, Oregon voters will decide Tuesday whether to keep its sanctuary state status.
Since 1987, when Oregon became the first state in the nation to be a sanctuary state, state agencies — including law enforcement — are forbidden from using resources or people to find or arrest people whose only legal violation is federal immigration law. Measure 105 seeks to repeal that law.
Advocates who say Oregon needs to keep its sanctuary status point to an underlying issue: Immigrants who are fearful to come forward when they’re a victim of a crime. They worry if they file a report against, say, a person who is abusing them, they and their family will be deported.
They worry ICE will work alongside local police to round up the undocumented.
Portland retains its sanctuary law status.
“We’ve seen survivors becoming more and more afraid to report,” said Claire Barrera, who works with Projecto Unida. That’s a group that offers services specifically for the Latino community, services for victims of domestic and sexual violence — if they seek help.
Increasingly, though, they’re more reluctant to seek that help, she said.
Barrera urges a “No” vote on Measure 105. That would maintain Oregon’s sanctuary status.
“As long as we can maintain that sanctuary status, I think we’ll continue to have this great relationship with police where we can protect folks as much as possible,” she said.
Sixteen of Oregon’s 36 county sheriffs, however, are in favor of Measure 105. A group called Oregonians for Immigration Reform say there is nothing racist about Measure 105. They say they want to see the “rule of law enforced equitably among all Oregonians.”