The specter of mass deportations under a returning President Trump has sparked a wave of resistance among leaders of America’s sanctuary cities. In Denver, Mayor Mike Johnston is preparing to mobilize protests and even risk jail time to oppose any large-scale deportation efforts targeting the city’s immigrant community.
“I would if I believed that our residents are having their rights violated,” Johnston stated in a recent interview, affirming his readiness to face incarceration for defying federal immigration enforcement. “If things are happening that are illegal or immoral or un-American in our city, I would certainly protest it, and I would expect other residents would do the same.”
A Clash of Values in the Mile High City
Denver, like many major metropolitan areas, has long embraced its identity as a sanctuary city, where local resources are shielded from being deployed for federal immigration raids and deportations. Trump’s hardline border czar, Tom Homan, has already put other sanctuary bastions like Los Angeles on notice, vowing to deploy “twice as many” ICE agents to execute mass removals.
For Mayor Johnston, it’s a direct affront to Denver’s values. “It’s like the Tiananmen Square moment with the rose and the gun, right?” he initially remarked, evoking the iconic image of a protester confronting a tank during China’s 1989 pro-democracy uprisings. While the mayor later expressed regret for the comparison, his underlying conviction remained firm.
“That’s the image I hope we can avoid. What I was trying to say is this is an outcome I hope we can avoid in this country. I think none of us want that.”
– Mayor Mike Johnston
Denver’s Defiance Mirrors a National Dilemma
Denver’s stance reflects the national quandary faced by cities that have long provided safe harbor for immigrants, both documented and undocumented. Trump’s anticipated deportation campaign, a cornerstone of his political brand, threatens to rupture an already strained detente between federal authorities and local leaders.
In New York, Mayor Eric Adams has reaffirmed the city’s commitment to shielding law-abiding immigrants, but also bemoaned the lack of federal support in shouldering the burden of a migrant crisis that has cost the city billions. “I’m not allowed to let them work [legally],” Adams lamented. “I’m not allowed to get them to participate in our tax system.”
Drawing the Line: Violent Criminals Still Face Deportation
Mayor Johnston was quick to clarify that Denver’s resistance has limits, particularly when it comes to immigrants involved in serious crimes. “We think if you are a violent criminal that is committing serious crimes like murder or rape in Denver, you should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law and you should be deported,” he affirmed.
It’s a line that other sanctuary city leaders have also sought to articulate, aiming to counter perceptions that their policies provide blanket immunity for immigrant lawbreakers. The stance may offer a sliver of common ground with an ascendant right wing that has made the specter of migrant crime a rallying cry.
Bracing for Battle: Protests and Uncertainty
As the nation hurtles toward another fractious chapter of the Trump era, Mayor Johnston is girding Denver for a tumultuous road ahead. He’s pledged to encourage protests against any mass deportation efforts while still holding out hope for a less confrontational resolution.
Yet in neighboring Aurora, where a trio of apartment complexes were allegedly overrun by a Venezuelan prison gang, the political landscape looks starkly different. “I hope that we are taking this seriously,” warned Republican councilwoman Danielle Jurinsky. “This is coming.”
For Denver and other sanctuary cities, the showdown over mass deportations looms as an existential test of both their principles and their political mettle. In the face of a federal juggernaut bent on upending their status quo, how far are local leaders truly willing to go in defense of the immigrant communities they’ve vowed to protect?
As the battle lines are drawn, Mayor Mike Johnston appears ready to put himself on the front line, placing Denver at the vanguard of a resistance movement whose reach and ramifications remain impossible to predict. In a nation perpetually wrestling with the complexities of immigration, identity and belonging, the Mile High City’s unfolding drama may well serve as a defining crucible of the Trump era’s second act.
