Debate over how the city should allocate resources to help those in Chelsea affected by recent immigration enforcement actions dominated much of Monday night’s council meeting.
During the public speaking portion early in the meeting, much of the discussion centered on an order introduced by District 7 Councilor Manuel Teshe. The order requested that the city manager refer to the council an appropriation request to provide an organization $1 million to contract legal services in order to “combat rights violations perpetrated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Chelsea.”
A number of residents and local small business owners noted that while they may have supported the intent of the motion, they balked at putting a heavy burden on taxpayers with the amount. Several also said that the city should focus on providing more help for small businesses or provide services that would benefit all members of the community.
“There’s a lot of concern about the ordinance that was presented, and the concern not being that there is not a need,” said Chelsea Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jennifer Hassell. “We completely understand, we sympathize, that’s not the issue. The issue is that we’ve had businesses in this community that have been hurting for over two years; they have been asking for help.”
Hassell said there have been meetings between the Chamber and the city, but that there have been no major solutions to the problems.
“The business owners would really like to know, especially in your district Councilor Teshe, what you are prepared to do for them,” Hassell said. “They respect what you are trying to do for those community members that don’t feel safe, but they also would like some respect themselves in recognizing what their situation is and what exactly it is that you hope to be able to do with the council as a whole. These businesses are the backbone of our community, some of which have been here for decades.”
Later in the meeting, Teshe noted that he had introduced several motions aimed at assisting downtown and small businesses that did not make it out of the council.
“I just wanted to start with that immigrant families, both documented and undocumented in Chelsea deserve protection and support, hands down,” said Joan Cromwell, president of Chelsea Black Community.
Cromwell said she appreciated a conversation she had with Teshe over the weekend, and said that diverting $1 million of taxpayer funds to support immigration legal services is an admirable goal.
“However, the proposed amount is excessive and would place a heavy financial burden on our community that is already facing deep, deep financial challenges,” Cromwell said.
Teshe later attempted to amend his order several times to first cut the amount requested down to $250,000, and then to take the financial amount out of the order because it was found to violate the city charter.
Before the vote could be taken, District 1 Councilor Todd Taylor introduced a successful motion to lay Teshe’s order on the table. The council voted 7-3 to table the motion, with Teshe and Councilors Roberto Jimenez-Rivera and Melinda Vega voting against tabling it. The order can be brought back at a future date if there is a motion and second to take it off the table, followed by a majority vote in favor.
A separate order introduced by District 4 Councilor Tanairi Garcia calling for a subcommittee meeting to be held with the city manager to discuss what city resources can be used to support families left behind by recent federal immigration enforcement actions in Chelsea.
“When we talk about community, we are talking about people, children, families, parents, and neighbors who make up the heart and soul of our city,” said Garcia. “But what happens when those families are taken from us when ICE comes into our neighborhoods, when deportations tear families apart, what happens to the people left behind? This is where our responsibility as a city begins.”
Garcia said the duty of the city and the council does not end at providing services or passing policies.
“Our duty extends to compassion, to care, and to protection,” said Garcia. “We must stand up for the families living in fear, the children who go to bed at night unsure if their parents will be there in the morning, and the mothers and fathers who are doing everything they can to hold their families together despite the pain of separation.”
The impact of federal immigration policies has touched the mental health of many in the city and created uncertainty for many in the community working hard to survive.
“This isn’t just happening to undocumented families, this is also happening to our blended families where some members are U.S. citizens and others are not,” Garcia said. “Families where children who are born here are growing up with a parent because of deportation; families who thought their citizenship would protect them from this kind of pain.”
Garcia said the policies have created a terrible domino effect throughout the city.
“This is a time for unity and love, not segregation,” said Garcia. “This isn’t a time to compare races or argue over who has suffered more. This is about our children who live in fear, children who deserve peace, safety, and stability.
“This is about sympathy and caring about seeing one another as human beings; we are one Chelsea, and when one of us is hurting, all of us feel it.”
Jimenez-Rivera said he supported the subcommittee on conference meeting because it will give the council an opportunity to discuss its role in providing support.
“I understand that most of us want to do something about that and I am looking forward to that conversation,” he said. “Something that I want to make sure that we are holding as we have these conversations is what is our role as a city, and what can we do given the fact that we don’t have unlimited money. There are different parts of our society that should be taking more or less of the brunt of different aspects of this … especially looking at philanthropy and non-profit agencies to make sure that they are doing their part and we are doing our part.
“As councilors, it is important for us to think of the best way for us in the city to have an impact on what is happening without necessarily opening us up for legal action against the city.”
Teshe said he supported Garcia’s motion and that it aligned with the intent of his original motion to help those in the city who feel alone and without help.
“I am really hopeful that this conversation is going to bring a lot of good answers for this city, and I want to give thanks to all the people that showed up today and engaged in this issue,” said Teshe. “I’m happy that all of you acknowledge that this is a big problem. My reasoning is to help the people, because ultimately, it’s the people who are the backbone of the community.”
Taylor said he agreed that the council should come together to figure out what the role of the city is in the issue.
“There are a lot of people at a lot of different levels dealing with this issue,” said Taylor. “But I want to make one point, and I’ve said it before, and it is coming true, we just had a subcommittee with the superintendent of schools about the 300 (fewer) students this year and that means about a $6 million shortfall for the Chelsea Public Schools. Now, I warned leaders in this city that if we sued the federal government it was going to put a target on our backs.”
Taylor said the city has to be smart about how it deals with the immigration issues and work together to find consensus.
“I feel horrible about the trauma and the displacement that is going on,” said Taylor. “But we as leaders have a responsibility to look ahead … what is going to happen if we do this, what is going to happen if we do that? And I am telling you, it was as clear as the nose on your face exactly what was going to happen, and sure as the world it happened.”
Council President Norieliz DeJesus said that she remains committed to fighting for the entire community and making sure all voices have a seat at the table.
“This is not an issue that is in silos working individually, we are all impacted,” she said. “As we met with the superintendent earlier, we heard the stories of what is going on in our schools, and all of our children are impacted. This is our future and this is when we stand strong.”