Faith leaders and other advocates working with the city’s migrants and asylum seekers are bracing for enforcement by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement once incoming President Donald Trump takes office — and the message from Mayor Eric Adams on the topic remains unclear.
More than 100 clergy and other humanitarian directors met Friday with the mayor and his top staff in an hour-long virtual meeting organized by Pastor Gil Monrose, the mayor’s faith advisor, to share multiple concerns ahead of Trump’s inauguration on Monday.
They represented organizations that fill the gap when government services aren’t enough, including running soup kitchens and providing other help to undocumented New Yorkers, with hundreds of thousands arriving over the last two years, they said.
The list of concerns ranged from what the city could do to support their own staff to protect against people with anti-immigrant views, to what the city will do to protect locations listed in ICE’s internal guidance as “sensitive sites” if Trump repeals it, according to people who attended the meeting.
ICE historically refrained from enforcement at a list of “sensitive sites,” including schools, rallies, and houses of worship.
They also asked what the city could do to protect people being detained on their way to these locations, and what the mayor has told new NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch about police cooperating with ICE.
Adams was also questioned about whether he would let his own personal legal issues get in the way of any decisions he could make on behalf of undocumented New Yorkers — which he angrily said would have no impact, multiple people told THE CITY.
The mayor’s message, which he repeated throughout, was that the NYPD would neither assist nor interfere with federal agents attempting to carry out deportations, multiple people on the call told THE CITY.
But attendees like Ruth Messinger, the former Manhattan borough president and City Council member now serving as co-chair of the Interfaith Center of New York, told THE CITY the mayor’s messaging has remained “unclear” even after their meeting.
“We know we’re up for some really hard times as a city with this new federal administration, that’s particularly true for our newest New Yorkers,” she said.
Although she and others praised many in Adams’ administration, Messenger said she “would wish for very clear statements from our City Hall of what they will or will not allow, even if they are overwritten by the federal government.”
So far, there’s still confusion, many attendees told THE CITY.
Another attendee, who asked to remain anonymous, said the situation is much different under Adams than during Trump’s first term in office, when then-Mayor Bill de Blasio offered clearer public support for undocumented New Yorkers. The need is also greater now with more than 200,000 asylum seekers who have come to the city.
“This will be radically different than last time,” the attendee said.
A spokesperson for Adams, Liz Garcia, said “this was a private meeting, but it’s not uncommon for the mayor to meet with faith leaders to discuss ways to collaborate on serving all of New York City’s communities.”
The Adams administration has opened 263 shelters to house and care for asylum seekers — spending more than $6.8 billion since the crisis began, city officials said.
Fear No Evil
The growing anxiety among those who help the less fortunate is due to President-elect Trump’s vow to initiate mass deportations as soon as he’s sworn in next week. A network of public schools serving mostly immigrant students began preparing for that scenario soon after he was elected.
Many of the religious leaders are meeting Thursday morning at the Union Theological Seminary to share resources, training, and network with other people as they prepare for mass deportations.
Rev. Matthew Heyd, the bishop for the Episcopal Diocese of New York, attended the meeting and said clergy across the board remain committed to serving their community members, regardless of immigration status.
“The faith community is asking the mayor and the administration to stand with us in doing that,” he said.
Adams met in early December with Trump’s incoming “border czar,” Tom Homan. A day after the meeting, in an interview with Fox News, the mayor said that his focus was on undocumented immigrants committing crimes.
He reiterated that law-abiding undocumented immigrants had the right to city services, like education and safety, under the city’s sanctuary laws — which are at best a loose collection of policies and political will.
“What a sanctuary city is not, is having an unsecured border and allowing gang members to come in, paroling people into the country when you’re telling them you can’t work for six months or a year and you have to be dependent on the local cities to take care of you,” Adams said in the interview.
Adams has dodged questions about whether someone is considered a criminal — and thus subject for deportation — as soon as they are accused of breaking the law.
He has also walked back comments he made in December about constitutional rights not applying to undocumented immigrants.
Heyd, whose church operates more than 50 food programs in New York City and north to Poughkeepsie, said these programs are potentially at risk if federal authorities begin mass sweeps.
“We want to continue to care for the community, we want to continue to gather people, and we’re going to continue to stand up for our values,” he said.
