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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06 01 2026 - Item 7.9 - Becca Bing1 Stefan Mercer From:Becca Bing <beccabing32@gmail.com> Sent:Monday, June 1, 2026 8:29 AM To:Public Comments Subject:EXTERNAL - I am a local teacher of many hard working immigrant families. I strongly support the proposed resolution to oppose the possible ICE facility in Gilroy. I also urge you to agendize a “No staging zone” policy for your next City Council meeting on June 15 to provide concrete protections for the community by prohibiting the use of city property for civil immigration enforcement. This simply means City property should be used for While my own family migrated to this country over two hundred years ago, I am still a conscientious, concerned citizen when it comes to the protection of recent immigrants in America. My students and their families deserve to be welcomed and treated with dignity, not harassed by ICE. Building an ICE facility in this area is outrageous, considering who does the agricultural work here to provide the country with food. With the threats of proposed ICE facilities in Gilroy and Dublin, the community needs strong leadership from the City Council and City administration to both oppose those facilities and establish concrete protections. Our City should oppose this possible d etention facility because we must combat this anti-immigrant agenda that destabilizes our communities and tears families apart. In this dire crisis, we greatly appreciate your brave local leadership in taking a public stand, together with all our communities, to oppose any detention facility in our City. ICE facilities and increased immigration enforcement are bad for business. Businesses that Gilroy counts on will be challenged and even shut down if they lose workers and customers due to fear and detention. A March 2026 report from the Bay Area Council Economic Institute states that mass deportation could reduce regional economic output by as much as $67 billion annually. We need to protect our people and our economy. That is why I am urging you to agendize a “No-Staging Zone” policy for June 15. City-owned or City-controlled property, such as public parks and public parking lots, should not to be used as a staging ground for immigration enforcement activity. Our tax-funded public property belongs to the people who live here, not to the agents terrorizing them. Our tax dollars should strengthen schools, hospitals, and safe neighborhoods - not tear our families apart. I do not want to see my Gilroy controlled by untrained, armed ICE agents. Gilroy should join the Cities of Campbell, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, San Jose, and VTA, as well as Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Mateo, San Francisco and Alameda Counties to adopt a “No Staging Zone” policy. It has been developed with thorough review by County Counsel and the City Attorneys, so you can be assured that the policy has solid legal standing and minimizes risk. As the City has been built by our diverse immigrant and farmworker communities, we must pass and implement all protections to make our City truly safe from the harms of immigration enforcement. Thank you for your courage in creating this powerful resolution to publicly oppose any immigration detention facility in Gilroy and for your bold leadership in prioritizing the safety of our people. Thank you, Rebecca Bing CAUTION: This email originated from an External Source. Please use proper judgment and caution when opening attachments, clicking links, or responding to this email.