SALT LAKE CITY — Dozens of demonstrators gathered inside the Salt Lake City Council building Tuesday night, urging city leaders to take stronger action against ICE.
The effort follows a large demonstration last week in downtown Salt Lake City, where hundreds marched to speak out against ICE enforcement practices.
"We need to make sure ICE is not taking any of our communities away from us," said En Canada, who organized the event and spoke during public comment.
Several of those same activists appeared at Tuesday's council meeting, pushing for ordinances and local measures to limit or halt ICE activity in the city.
"Anything short of the abolition of ICE is a repeated cycle of violence," protester Kaile Akina said.
Organizers acknowledged steps the mayor has taken to oppose certain federal enforcement actions but argued the city needs to go further to prevent the kind of incidents seen recently in Minneapolis.
"I'm here to ask you to create ordinances to preemptively combat the lawlessness we are seeing in other cities," Marina Price said. "Specifically, I'm asking you to create a separation ordinance for the police. Ban the use of city resources, including funds, facilities and data systems."
Another speaker, Fane Harris, urged city leaders to pass a resolution opposing what she called federal overreach.
"Passing a resolution to abolish ICE and take an official stand against federal tyranny. Ensuring city staff are not used for civil immigration enforcement services," she said.
Tuesday's council meeting ended around 9 p.m. Following the session, protesters briefly gathered outside, chanting "abolish ICE." Organizers said they plan to continue showing up to keep pressure on city leaders.
