Migration, Security, and Resistance: Global and Local Perspectives by Graham Hudson & Idil Atak

Author:Graham Hudson & Idil Atak [Hudson, Graham & Atak, Idil]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781000467857
Goodreads: 57926581
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2021-11-15T00:00:00+00:00

Sanctuary and the Road to SB4: multilevel migratory governance and the criminalization of undocumented migration in the United States

The decision to pass legislation targeting sanctuary cities in Texas is best understood as a local variant of the broader political battle surrounding the governance of undocumented migration that has been in the headlines and on policy agendas in the United States since the 1980s (Lasch et al., 2018; Varsanyi, 2008).

While it is the natural tendency of the modern nation-state to control its borders and condition the entry requirements for non-citizens in the name of state sovereignty, the US context is characterized by the particular way that economics, law, and foreign policy have combined to fuel highly politicized battles between different levels of government on irregular migration. Within these battles, the local jurisdictions that take steps to facilitate undocumented migrants’ access to public services as well as limit or prevent cooperation with federal migratory authorities are those that adopt or are attributed the term “sanctuary”. In recent US history, the first sanctuary cities arose during the 1980s, when Central American asylum seekers fleeing the civil wars of their home countries found support from a network of religious organizations working with local authorities, such as in the city of San Francisco, which famously issued its “sanctuary city ordinance” in 1986 (Ridgley, 2008).

Nevertheless, there is no single definition of a “sanctuary city” or jurisdiction beyond this general description and the term takes on similar yet distinct meanings when found in other countries (Bauder, 2017). Moreover, the notion of sanctuary jurisdictions in the US context is complicated further by two factors. The first is a result of the system of multilevel migratory governance in place, in which different overlapping layers of government are responsible for different policies within the same geographic area. In other words, it is entirely possible for an undocumented resident of a given urban area to be faced with contradictory policies at the city, county, and state levels, which moreover can change radically over time. Instead of pursuing sanctuary policies, local governments can also move in the opposite direction and decide to implement policies at the city, county, or state level that are designed to strengthen cooperation with federal migratory authorities and restrict undocumented residents’ access to public services.

The second is the fact that the word “sanctuary” is a highly politicized term that is used as a discursive weapon by both proponents and opponents of undocumented migrants and their rights. For the same reason, local public figures might exaggerate or underplay the actual degree of policies and practices in place in order to attract or avoid attention depending on their particular circumstances. The mayor of a large and left-leaning city in a left-leaning state will have more to gain than lose by loudly proclaiming the sanctuary status of the city. Conversely, blue cities in red states might shy away from using the term even though they de facto pursue the same or similar policies due to concerns over potential political conflicts or electoral backlash, or even legal action in the case of Texas.

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