Gov. Kathy Hochul on Friday morning announced new legislation to take on President Donald Trump’s federal immigration agents — but Central New Yorkers rallied Friday for Hochul to go further. Hochul unveiled the law just before the demonstration, part of a national “ICE Out” series of pr otests showing solidarity with Minnesota residents’ resistance against mass deportation operations carried out by the federal government. Hochul’s proposed law, titled the “Local Cops, Local Crimes Act,” would prohibit formal collusion with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and terminate the state’s 14 active 287(g) agreements. It would not prevent informal collaboration between individuals or agencies and ICE.  Demonstrators in Syracuse and some state lawmakers in Albany, however, say the state legislature has already introduced more potent legislation, and urged the governor to do more. The “ICE Out” protest matched similar demonstrations throughout the nation, and local businesses closed to support a general strike, or donated portions of proceeds to local immigrant advocacy groups. Hochul’s act would also establish a pathway for state residents to sue officers for constitutional violations, and would prohibit federal agents from entering “sensitive locations” — such as houses of worship, schools, hospitals, and private homes — absent a judicial warrant. The New York For All Act would establish that same protection for sensitive locations.   By the afternoon, hundreds of demonstrators had convened at Clinton Square, demanding the governor pass what many advocates consider stronger protections for immigrants. They also demanded the city and county officials declare they will not sign 287(g) agreements with ICE. Led by the Syracuse Peace Council and activist groups, protesters demanded city and county officials declare they will not sign 287(g) agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  Demonstrators also sought for local officials to pledge local agencies will not share data collected by police surveillance technology — such as Flock Safety’s license plate readers — with federal immigration officials. The protesters’ foremost demand was the state’s passage of the New York For All Act, a bill in the state legislature that would enact sweeping prohibitions against all ICE collusion across the state.  After Hochul announced her own legislation, the New York Civil Liberties Union released a statement urging the governor to instead pass New York For All. The sponsors of New York For All, Assemblymember Karina Reyes and State Senator Andrew Gounardes, issued a statement praising Hochul’s bill as a “good first step,” but argued the New York For All Act would institute more comprehensive protections for all New Yorkers, regardless of immigration status. “Even without 287(g) agreements, local law enforcement are able to share information with ICE, allow ICE officers into government facilities, and notify ICE about people in local custody,” Reyes and Gounardes said. “Our New York For All Act is the strongest way for us to guarantee that safety. It applies to all state and local government agencies our communities rely on—and to all the ways these agencies could coordinate with or collude with ICE.” CNY leaders endorse New York For All In Central New York, a growing chorus of elected officials are also calling on Hochul to enact New York For All.  Led by Councilor Chol Majok, the Syracuse Common Council on Monday unanimously approved a resolution endorsing New York For All and urging state lawmakers and the governor to enact the legislation. Some councilors are also speaking with local advocates who want the council to pass a resolution blocking the city from renewing contracts with corporations supporting or profiting from the White House’s anti-immigrant operations. Syracuse Mayor Sharon Owens on Thursday endorsed New York For All in her State of the City address.  “These protections matter because they uphold trust, safety, and dignity for everyone who calls New York and Syracuse home,” Owens said. During the Friday protest, Owens issued a press release commending Hochul’s “Local Cops, Local Crimes Act.” State Senator Rachel May, who is co-sponsoring the New York For All Act, said in a December interview with Central Current that Trump’s immigration agents are currently defying federal laws.  These breaches of federal law include allowing attorneys to accompany their clients to immigration hearings. May said the agents appeared to be “rewriting the rules as they go along.” As children avoid school and workers avoid jobsites out of fear of ICE and Border Patrol agents, May said, that fear is creating growing momentum around New York to establish greater protections for immigrants. “Now that it’s becoming obvious that the vast majority of immigrants in this country are people who are here peaceably trying to obey the law… people are starting to really understand that we need to be more active in protecting them,” May said.  Onondaga County Legislature Majority Leader Nodesia Hernandez on Friday introduced a resolution condemning ICE’s “crimes against humanity,” and calling on the Republican legislators and County Executive Ryan McMahon to join the Democratic caucus in condemning ICE’s activities in the county. “We’re asking the county executive to stand by his recent article that he put out saying that he won’t have his departments deal with activity dealing with ICE,” Hernandez said. The resolution, which the legislature will consider on Tuesday, is non-binding, but Hernandez said she and her colleagues are exploring legislative options to enact stronger anti-ICE measures into county law. Justin Sayles, a spokesperson for McMahon, said that the county executive had not yet seen Hernandez’s resolution but said McMahon’s recent letter to the editor of the Post Standard made his stance “pretty clear.” General strike solidarity Hundreds of Central New Yorkers on Friday convened at Clinton Square in solidarity with Minnesota residents protesting President Donald Trump’s deportation operations.  They lined South Salina Street near Clinton Square. Several protesters held signs in support of the New York For All Act. Michael Denardo and Elizabeth Bryan, of Liverpool, said they attended the protest to “fight fascism” and show solidarity with their Upstate University Hospital colleagues who have been targeted, detained and deported by ICE and related federal agencies. Clad in her grandfather’s black leather jacket, Bryan said she also protested, in part, because of her grandfather. The jacket had patches representing his service in World War II. He served on a submarine, fighting the Japanese in the Pacific theater, she said.  “My grandfather fought fascism, you know, miles beneath the ocean, fighting the Japanese Imperial Army in the ‘40s, and I fight it here in solidarity with Minneapolis,” Bryan said. Bryan ultimately found courage in reflecting on the memory of her grandfather. “I don’t think it’s gonna be easy, but I think we’re gonna be okay,” she added. Another protester, Katie Volino, has been following news about ICE’s operations near her home. Volino has lived in Syracuse for a decade, she said, and is alarmed to see reports and videos of masked men detaining people outside Home Depot and Lowes, and loading them into unmarked cars with unclear destinations Volino was disappointed by Hochul’s anti-ICE legislation, which she believes is insufficient.  “They need to pass legislation that comes from the people,” Volino said. The post Hochul proposes limited anti-ICE bill as Central New Yorkers rally for New York For All appeared first on Central Current. ...read more read less