CIVIC GROUP OPPOSES TULSA COUNTY PARTNERSHIP WITH ICE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 1, 2019

Contact: Bob Ritz, (918) 895-3341, [email protected]

TULSA, Okla. — ACTION, a nonpartisan coalition of congregations and nonprofits representing more than 5,000 people, is calling on Tulsa County to end two cooperative agreements with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency in a policy statement issued this week.

Under 287(g), the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office performs certain immigration enforcement duties at the local level in conjunction with its operation of the David L. Moss Center for Criminal Justice. The county also has an agreement with ICE under which the jail holds up to 200 immigrant detainees from other jurisdictions. The 287(g) agreement is up for renewal, as the current agreement terminates on June 30.

ACTION — Allied Communities of Tulsa Inspiring Our Neighborhoods — surfaces issues of concern to the community through a variety of engagement methods and raises them with public servants. The position statement, available at actiontulsa.org, reflects community opposition to Tulsa County participation in the 287(g) and ICE detention programs because they undermine public safety and are financially wasteful.

ACTION argues that time and money spent on immigration enforcement by the sheriff’s office detracts from focus on local matters. Only 78 of the more than 23,000 counties and municipalities in the United States participate in the 287(g) or ICE detention programs, and ACTION thinks quality of life in Tulsa County would improve if immigration enforcement were left to federal authorities.

ACTION is planning a series of public-awareness events and other activities focused on persuading county leaders that the two immigration programs are not in the public interest and should be terminated at the earliest opportunity.

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ACTION member institutions: All Souls Unitarian Church; Bethany Christian Church; Church of the Restoration Unitarian Universalist; Church of the Resurrection (Catholic); Dan Allen Center; Dream Alliance Oklahoma; East Side Christian Church; Ellen Ochoa Elementary PTA; Fellowship Congregational United Church of Christ; Hope Unitarian Church; National Association of Social Workers (Tulsa Chapter); Phillips Theological Seminary; St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church; St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church; Together Oklahoma; Tulsa Interfaith Alliance; Tulsa Lutherans in Action.