Seattle begins installing anti-federal immigration enforcement signage

By Randy Diamond
The Center Square

One of the first of an expected 656 signs stating that city property in Seattle cannot be used by federal authorities for civil immigration enforcement efforts has been posted at Jefferson Park in the Beacon Hill neighborhood.

The signs are part of Mayor Katie Wilson’s Jan. 29 executive order to prevent the Trump administration from using city property as part of its campaign to detain and deport illegal immigrants.

Wilson said in the executive order that “appropriate preparation is critical given the unpredictable, chaotic, and violent behavior of the federal government,” a reference to immigration enforcement actions in Minneapolis and other U.S. communities that have led to the death of protesters and clashes with federal immigration agents.

A U.S. Department of Justice spokesperson in a statement to The Center Square Thursday said the department “will not tolerate the obstruction of lawful efforts to enforce federal immigration law and has sued several jurisdictions over sanctuary policies that put the American people at risk.”

The statement went on to say, “The department will continue to bring litigation against willful offenders and work overtime to ensure those harmful policies are eradicated across the county.”

The sign at Jefferson Park reads, “This property is owned and controlled by the city of Seattle.

“It shall not be used for civil immigration enforcement staging, operations, or processing.”

Other signs will be more prominently displayed.

The city plans to install 25 signs outside Seattle City Hall and the Seattle Municipal Tower and other city municipal buildings and 20 signs on the Seattle Center campus, home to some of the city’s most iconic attractions, according to a Tuesday memo from city council staff analyst Greg Doss.

It’s unclear whether signs would be posted outside the Space Needle, because it is under a private lease, or the Climate Pledge Arena, but much of the 74-acre Seattle Center campus is directly controlled by the city.

Another 60 signs are planned for power substations operated by the city-owned power company, Seattle City Light, and for the Ballard Sculpture Garden, which is owned by the power company.

The biggest share of signs, 470, will be posted at parks, community centers, swimming pools and boating ramps, the Doss memo details.

Multiple city parking garages, according to the memo, will also get signs.

The memo said the city will spend $45,000 manufacturing the signs and that city departments will be expected to absorb the cost of producing the signs from their existing budgets.

It did not estimate the cost to install the signs, or how long it will take to install all of the signs.

Andrew Arthur, a fellow at the conservative-leaning Center for Immigration Studies, said he expects the Justice Department to sue Seattle over its anti-ICE policies.

The former immigration judge called Wilson’s order “political pandering” to left-leaning Seattle residents that would not stand up in court.

He maintained that the U.S. Constitution’s 10th Amendment establishes that federal laws and treaties take precedence over conflicting state or local laws.

Arthur said the city is also spending dollars on the signs that could be used for other city services.

“It’s a complete waste of city money,” he said.

Arthur said the city will also have to spend more money defending “their losing position,” assuming the Justice Department files a lawsuit.

Wilson’s office did not respond to requests for comment from The Center Square.

However, in her executive order, Wilson states that the 10th Amendment prohibits the federal government from commandeering the city’s property and resources.

In addition to the Wilson executive order, the Seattle City Council’s Public Safety Committee is expected to recommend to the full City Council in late March that it pass an ordinance codifying Wilson’s executive order into city law.

The committee’s chairman, Bob Kettle, said after a committee meeting on Monday that placing the signs on city property is the right thing to do to show immigrants that the city supports them.

“We have a whole lot of refugees coming here from places where it was not safe to turn to local government,” he said. “So, they have little faith.”

In a statement to The Center Square, City Attorney Erika Evans said that Seattle leaders will act with urgency and courage to protect residents.

“As such, my office will fight vigorously to enforce this legislation if it is enacted, including by seeking relief in the courts for any potential violations of the ordinance,” she said.

Both Wilson’s executive order and the proposed ordinance exclude preventing ICE action when immigration agents have the authority to obtain a judicial warrant.

Seattle is one of several cities that have placed signs on city property prohibiting ICE enforcement and staging action.

Chicago and Providence have passed similar executive orders on signage.

On Monday, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against New Jersey and its Gov. Mikie Sherrill over a recent executive order banning ICE from state property without a judicial warrant.