As anti-ICE protests continue to grip parts of the U.S., elected officials across Oklahoma are voicing their opinions on the impact of the Trump administration’s deportation campaign.
Mayor Monroe Nichols on Sunday expanded on his concerns with increased Immigration and Customs Enforcement presence in Tulsa. His comments came during a forum on public spending after an attendee posed a question about ICE.
“We’ve never had a reliance on a federal force going into neighborhoods like we’ve seen right now, and I think we’ve seen it be incredibly destructive,” Nichols said.
His remarks follow the killing of two people in Minnesota — Renee Good and Alex Pretti — by ICE agents. They also come on the heels of multiple reported sightings of immigration agents in Tulsa and local protests against their presence.
“What I would say, not necessarily to the ICE agents, but I would say to the (Trump) administration, is that the American people have spoken, and the American people don’t like what they see, and the American people want something very, very different,” Nichols said.
His comments echo those of Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt, who appeared on CNN in late January to share similar concerns.
“So what’s the goal right now?” he said. “Is it to deport every single non-U.S. citizen? I don’t think that’s what Americans want. We have to stop politicizing this. We need real solutions on immigration reform.”
Stitt, who is chair of the National Governors Association, also released a joint statement with Democrat Maryland Gov. Wes Moore urging “leaders at all levels to exercise wisdom and consider a reset of strategy toward a unified vision for immigration enforcement.”
The governor has utilized ICE in the past through his Operation Guardian initiative, and has previously supported the president’s immigration policy. Stitt now says Trump is being given “bad advice.”
Nichols said he’s hoping what has been called a “reset” in Minneapolis starts a broader conversation on the appropriate use of federal forces in American cities. He said the public’s lack of trust in the federal government is only being amplified by ICE agents choosing to hide their identities behind masks, a tactic Nichols said will leave a “bad taste” in the mouths of residents.
As first reported by The Oklahoman, Attorney General Gentner Drummond, a Republican candidate for governor, was asked if the state required ICE agents to wear IDs and appear without masks so they can be identified in the event of a lawsuit.
Drummond did not directly say if the state would be held liable, but said Oklahoma and ICE have a memorandum of understanding covering the work of federal agents.
Ismael Lele is a Report for America corps member and writes about business in Tulsa for The Oklahoma Eagle. Your donation to match our Report for America grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting this link.
