Lynn Tramonte is the Deputy Director at America’s Voice. She is the organization’s primary liaison to Capitol Hill and policy groups in Washington, DC. Prior to joining America’s Voice, Lynn worked at the National Immigration Forum for eight years doing legislative and communications work. She is a veteran of numerous legislative battles, including the comprehensive immigration reform debates in 2006 and 2007, and led the nationwide campaign to defeat federal legislation that would turn state and local police into immigration agents and undermine community policing. Lynn is a nationally respected advocate, coalition‐builder, and writer.
Publications
Debunking the Myth of “Sanctuary Cities”
- April 26, 2011
There is much confusion about the term “sanctuary city.” The term is often used derisively by immigration opponents to blast what are best described as community policing policies. Critics claim that these cities and states provide “sanctuary” to undocumented immigrants, but research shows that the opposite is true. In fact, community policing policies are about providing public safety services, not sanctuary, to both immigrant residents and the entire community. Crime experts, including hundreds of local police officers, have found that cities with community policing policies continue to work closely with DHS and have built bridges to immigrant communities that have improved their ability to fight crime and protect the entire community. Historically, the federal government has enforced civil immigration law, and state and local police have focused on enforcing criminal law. However, propelled by increased frustration with the nation’s broken immigration system and by growing anti-immigrant sentiment, politicians’ demands for state and local police to take on an increased role in immigration enforcement have grown exponentially. This culminated in the passage of Arizona’s notorious SB1070 law in 2010, which would turn Arizona state and local police officers into deportation agents.
Learn MoreJoin our team in creating a more welcoming nation.
