A new skirmish in the nations immigration battle is playing out on the streets and in the parks of Los Angeles.
City officials have ordered more than 450 placards installed at libraries, parks, transit hubs and even the Los Angeles Zoo, declaring municipal property off-limits to federal immigration enforcement, according to Sean Hannity. The signs, rooted in Executive Directive 17 from Mayor Karen Bass, proclaim that city facilities cannot be used for immigration raids, staging or processing, even as federal authorities insist the declarations carry no legal force.
Mayor Bass framed the move as a stand against what she characterizes as federal intimidation tactics in immigrant neighborhoods. I will not stand by while federal agents use our neighborhoods as staging grounds for fear and intimidation, Bass said in a statement to FOX 11. In Los Angeles, we are setting clear boundaries: city property will not be used to carry out these raids.
Federal officials, however, have made it clear they will not allow local politicians to obstruct national immigration law. Bill Essayli, the U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, dismissed the signage campaign in blunt terms, saying, I just think this whole thing is silly. The signs have no legal weight, force or effect on anything the federal government does, Essayli said.
He underscored that federal agents will continue to operate wherever necessary, regardless of municipal posturing. Federal agents will go anywhere they need to go to enforce federal law, including city property. Pressed on whether the signs would actually stop enforcement, Essayli didnt hesitate, adding, No. Not at all. Theyre null and void. They mean nothing to us.
City leaders have not revealed how much taxpayers are spending on this symbolic gesture, even as crime, homelessness and infrastructure needs mount. Industry estimates of roughly $500 per sign for production and installation suggest the total could approach $250,000, raising fresh questions about a city government more focused on signaling defiance of federal immigration law than on delivering basic services and public safety.
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