Last month, SF Pride at Work members traveled to the U.S.-Mexico border to do humanitarian work with a group called No More Deaths. The border is a most surreal place, where the sand could tell a thousand stories of those who have come to pass. As you walk the desert, a particular narrative emerges – that of crinkled pieces of cloth and tattered shoes that litter the sand – the remnants of untold stories of people who have perished under a cruel sun. It is easy to get lost in the desert – one step in the wrong direction leads to miles and miles of waterless landscape beneath scorching heat.
Many times it is women and children who succumb to the harsh conditions, and are left behind so as to not slow down a group. However, it is the quality of life in their home countries – whether political, economic, or gender/sexual – that drove over 1 million people last year to take a chance on the desert.
San Francisco has always been a destination for immigrants – more than 30 percent of San Franciscans are foreign-born. Undoubtedly the city's 20-year-old sanctuary policy, which marks its anniversary this month, is one reason so many have sought refuge here. The key value underpinning our sanctuary policy is the belief that people should not live in fear – that we San Franciscans, and through us our local government, should not be in the business of enforcing federal laws that criminalize fellow San Franciscans for their mere presence within our city and that public safety thrives on inclusive civic participation of all San Franciscans, not just the documented ones.
San Francisco is also our place of refuge as queers, and we have our own "sanctuary policy." It is no surprise that as Central American political refugees came here escaping brutal dictatorships in the 1970s and 1980s, many young queers came here to flee the homophobia of small towns across America. We have the strongest laws in the country protecting LGBTs against discrimination and ensuring our right to live freely and without harassment.
Recently, San Francisco's sanctuary policy has changed for immigrant youth, who can now be turned over to federal immigration officials and deported without due process. The policy change was a result of a sensationalist series of stories in the San Francisco Chronicle regarding immigrants accused of serious crimes. It is always disconcerting to see such scaremongering, whether directed against undocumented immigrants, as was the case with the Chronicle series, or against our queer community as we see all too regularly.
The new policy works like this: If a minor is accused of a crime, the minor is automatically referred to immigration, even in cases where the minor may be innocent or may only have committed an infraction or misdemeanor. To date 160 minors have been deported. Some have likely been innocent. Some have been deported after having gotten into fights at school. These children are forever separated from their families and sent to countries where they now may no longer have connections. It seems inevitable that some will again, by themselves, attempt the deadly dangerous desert crossing.
The San Francisco immigrant rights community and its allies in the LGBT community are asking that minors referred to juvenile hall at least get the opportunity for a hearing before a judge to determine their innocence or guilt. If a child is found to have committed a felony by a juvenile court judge, they will be reported to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. However, if the youth is innocent of the charges, was overcharged and actually committed a misdemeanor, or qualifies for immigration relief, they will not be reported to ICE.
On October 5 the San Francisco Board of Supervisors will consider legislation to guarantee minimum due process protections for immigrant youth. The legislation was proposed by Supervisor David Campos, one of our two openly gay supervisors, who himself as a child crossed the desert with his family, undocumented immigrants fleeing from the wars of Central America.
Today immigrants and queers are both demonized and vilified as threats to the mainstream of American life. Both groups are engaged in political struggle to vindicate our basic humanity and belonging. Now more than ever is the time for groups like ours to come together, to act in coalition, and to ensure that all move forward together. Undoubtedly our struggles are linked, as our San Francisco histories are parallel, and now is the time for us to stand with each other and to demand justice for all of us.
Barbara Lopez is a member of the Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club; Rafael Mandelman is president of the Milk Club and a candidate for supervisor in District 8; Kate Kendell is executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights; and Robert Haaland is from SF Pride at Work.