March 22, 2024 Dena Jensen

We have passed the second month now that community members, who have been serving on Bellingham’s Immigration Advisory Board, have not been allowed to meet to continue their work to request and analyze data to determine compliance with the Keep Washington Working Act, along with facilitating community involvement and discussions on regional immigration issues. 

The Keep Washington Working Act, among other things, prohibits State and local enforcement agencies from sharing most types of information with federal immigration enforcement agencies. Non-compliance with the act can mean detainment, family separation, deportation, and sometimes death to our friends and neighbors who are immigrants. Performing oversight regarding this act is just one example of how the work of the Immigration Advisory Board is potentially life-saving.

I have followed up with Bellingham City Council Member Jace Cotton a few times seeking to learn about any potential public part of the aligning process that the City has indicated is supposed to be taking place between City Council, City Administration, the IAB, and others while the IAB remains suspended, but I have not received any input from him yet regarding that query.

Every silent day devoid of visible action that passes allows the imprint of the City’s ordinance to suspend the meetings of Immigration Advisory Board to remain, undisturbed. Public records and research shows the recitals, formerly identified as “findings of fact” by City officials, as flawed, especially in regard to how they have allowed members of the Immigration Advisory Board to be portrayed, both in the ordinance itself, but also in discussions and media reports based on them.

While City officials eventually removed the wording of “findings of fact” right before they voted to approve the ordinance for the first of three times, they have allowed the recitals to remain. I wrote yesterday to ask them to remove at least one of them that makes claims that public records establish to be untrue, and for the suggestions of the Immigration Advisory Board related to the entire ordinance to be honored.

Here are the links to the documents I attached to the email:
https://noisywatersnw.files.wordpress.com/2024/03/20231011143324-highlighted-villalba-keller-lassiter-darrow-on-info-needed-for-housing-presentations-w-oct-agenda-20231011143324_anon_liz_darrow_anon___lassiter__jackie_a.__jalassiter_cob-1.pdf

https://noisywatersnw.files.wordpress.com/2024/03/20230609105307_anon__keller__janice_l.__jkeller_cob.org___martens__kristina_m.__kmmartens_cob.org__lelo_foodju_37_r-1.pdf

https://noisywatersnw.files.wordpress.com/2024/03/oct-17-2023-iab-meeting-discussion-of-blake-lyon-housing-presentation-1.pdf

Below is my email:

Sent: Thursday, March 21, 2024 at 05:32:56 PM PDT

Subject: Regarding one of the recitals in Ordinance 2024-02-006, suspending meetings of the Immigration Advisory Board

Dear Bellingham City Council:

I would have copied this email to BPD Chief Mertzig, but I could not find an email address for her. 

I am writing regarding one of the recitals in Ordinance 2024-02-006 which you passed on February 12, 2024 to suspend meetings of the Immigration Advisory Board. 

I want to provide some information to shed light on City assertions and request action related to the following recital of the ordinance that was passed to suspend these meetings:

“WHEREAS, IAB Members who establish the meeting agendas have resisted allowing some City presentations to come forward, limiting the City’s ability to provide comprehensive information and answer questions posed by IAB Members on topics such as City law enforcement operations and affordable housing initiatives;”

Records I obtained this year from public records requests and the screen recording I made of the October 17, 2023 Immigration Advisory Board meeting contain discussions surrounding a potential staff presentation on housing, along with a police presentation on law enforcement operations which had been suggested by City staff members who were attending IAB meetings. (It’s my understanding that the City was not successful in making a recording of the October 17, 2023 meeting. There are three regular IAB meetings in 2023 for which there are no meeting recordings posted.) Here is a link to a copy of the portion of the October 17 meeting screen recording I had made back at that time which corresponds to the transcription I am attaching to this email: https://drive.google.com/file/d/12-sRvYZAlLPTbJi4u3iaKwBhaD9lxAtx/view?usp=share_link

The unsubstantiated claim in the recital above – that IAB members who establish meeting agendas have resisted allowing some alluded-to presentations – is untrue.  The recital singles out up to 3 members of the IAB that can be reasonably identified, and also conflates those members, so that the assertion falls on all three. If there is any other source of material that outweighs the evident intent of IAB members to receive such presentations shown in the email records and transcription of the meeting discussion I am attaching to this email, I request to be provided with that material.

It is clear from the materials to which I have access, that, far from not wanting to allow presentations, IAB members, including specific members that the recital above made claims about, desired to receive those types of presentations, along with many types of information from the City which would be focused on impacts related to the immigrant community. In the case of the discussion about housing in particular, it was both stated by an IAB member involved in establishing meeting agendas in an email chain discussion (which I have attached a copy of), as well as stated by an additional IAB member during the meeting, that receiving an immigrant-focused housing presentation would have been preferred as early as that October meeting, or, as was stated in other words, “sooner than later.” 

Records show that it seemed, from the City’s perspective, that the need of the IAB to receive some clarifying information about the housing presentation prior to it being placed on the agenda, posed a delay for the presentation. At the October 17, 2023 IAB meeting,  IAB members and staff members who were present used some of that time to have a discussion about that need for clarifying information and how to actually be able to have the City present material to the IAB that would be useful to their work. 

Staff described what types of efforts could be onerous for their side. IAB members described what types of efforts could be onerous for theirs. After the contributions everybody made, both the City Council Legislative Assistant and the City Communications Director/Interim Deputy Administrator indicated they felt they had helpful input that would allow them to move forward in arranging the presentation, of which IAB members were supportive. 

In the case of a presentation from Bellingham Police Chief Rebecca Mertzig, which had been proposed by Communications Director Janice Keller in an email on June 6, 2023, Liz Darrow, as a member of the IAB’s Process Subcommittee (the team that was involved with setting agendas) had responded the same day. She indicated that although there were concerns about a presentation to the full Immigration Advisory Board due to a sense of safety for attendees (the IAB has been successful in developing an increasing IAB meeting attendance by immigrants in the community), that the process subcommittee felt “that it would be prudent to offer members of the IAB a meeting with Chief Mertzig to do the learning about the drug ordinance, and then they can present back to the IAB. That way, members of the board and public who don’t have a safety issue can opt into that meeting, and then everyone can have the benefit of learning what the rules and processes are from that group of people.” 

An email chain with additional correspondence related to this meeting, which is attached to this email, continued over the next couple days. The discussion resulted in a confirmation from Liz Darrow that from her perspective, the time and date when Chief Mertzig was available meet with a non-quorum group of IAB members which Janice Keller had sent – along with her proposal to talk further and extend invitations at the June IAB meeting – would work. There wasn’t further correspondence about this matter that appeared in public records provided to me of communications between IAB process subcommittee members and City officials for 2023, and no further discussion about it is recorded in IAB meeting minutes.

In addition to the two presentations directly related to the claims in the recital, throughout the course of their 4 years of meetings, the Immigration Advisory Board has shown a pattern of receiving and participating in numerous presentations from City staff and officials, while IAB members have also sought information from and interacted with Bellingham Police Department officials numerous times. 

According to the vote on the City Council motion to remove the wording “findings of fact” in the IAB suspension ordinance, it would seem the City Council views the truth of the suspension ordinance recitals as unimportant. On the other hand, Council Member remarks at the January 2, 2024 City Council reorganization meeting and at the January 29, 2024 Committee of the Whole meeting, as well as local news reports, reflected the impression that the City was relying on the recitals as a basis of truth for suspending the IAB. 

What’s more, the material in those recitals was placed there by respected and powerful members of City government. Some of those same officials have voiced their support of the work of the Immigration Advisory Board and were originally were pursuing the action in the form of an emergency ordinance which would have allowed for much less public input and involvement in the process. 

Officials have expressed their own concerns about dangers posed by misinformation. However, through participating in race and equity listening sessions among other things, City officials have had direct exposure in the not-too-distant past about the very uneven playing field BIPOC and immigrants have been relegated to when pursuing government actions toward their safety, health, and well-being. 

As just one example, City officials have not chosen to suspend City Council meetings or the operations of the Administration in order to allow the City Council and the City Administration adequate time to evaluate the City’s purpose, goals, and objectives for maintaining the Immigration Advisory Board, and the level of City resources needed to achieve them; and make any necessary changes to Bellingham Municipal Code (BMC) Chapter 2.26. With reference to the example given by officials related to fixing a plane while it is in flight: while the IAB has been grounded, the planes of the City Council and Administration are still allowed to fly. 

Many community members are prone to believe assertions made by officials whom they support, especially in a formal and legally binding document. It follows that untrue assertions in this City ordinance about anyone, and especially any member of a marginalized and mistreated community, further undermine building trust in City officials. Even worse, those assertions pose threats to needlessly damage IAB members personally, their reputations as volunteers seeking to serve their community ethically and in good faith, as well as the reputation of the entire Immigration Advisory Board.

In light of the records and context I have provided, I call for the Council to amend Ordinance 2024-02-006 to remove the inaccurate recital I have included in my email above and to meaningfully consult with the members of the Immigration Advisory Board in order to reach an agreement on an official document that is far more reflective of the elements proposed by Immigration Advisory Board members in their Proposed ordinance with changes suggested by Board Members.

Beyond that, I call for Council Members, the Mayor’s office, and City staff to pursue avenues to overcome the kind of responses they have had to IAB members’ actions and remarks that have pointed some of them in the direction of taking City action that includes falsely characterizing these volunteers’ stated positions and goals. 

In your public meetings that have contained discussions of suspending the IAB, numerous officials have variously alleged that IAB members have created tension, an adversarial atmosphere, have made people, including immigrants in our community, feel uncomfortable and concerned about themselves becoming targeted.   

At the same time, such assertions about Immigration Advisory Board members that have been made by officials – compounded by unsubstantiated claims like the ordinance recital highlighted in this email – create tension, an adversarial atmosphere, and have, as indicated in public responses, made people, including immigrants serving on the Immigration Advisory Board, feel uncomfortable and targeted.

From my perspective, if officials wish to foster an advisory board environment where trust can grow and empathy can flourish, where all participants even more robustly experience and emanate positive energy, encourage one another, and are focused on constructive actions and forward movement, then officials in positions of power must persistently demonstrate these practices. 

I look forward to you promptly amending Ordinance 2024-02-006 and to your expediting the resumption of Immigration Advisory Board meetings. 

Sincerely, 

Dena Jensen

Birch Bay, WA

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This email was sent to the following addresses:

To: ccmail@cob.org <ccmail@cob.org>; Daniel C. Hammill <dchammill@cob.org>; Jace A. Cotton <jacotton@cob.org>; Hannah E. Stone <hestone@cob.org>; ehwilliams@cob.org <ehwilliams@cob.org>; Hollie Huthman <hahuthman@cob.org>; Michael W. Lilliquist <mlilliquist@cob.org>; Lisa A. Anderson <laanderson@cob.org>

Cc: mayorsoffice@cob.org <mayorsoffice@cob.org>; Janice L. Keller <jkeller@cob.org>; Jackie A. Lassiter <jalassiter@cob.org>; amarriner@cob.org <amarriner@cob.org>; WREC <wrec@chuckanuthealthfoundation.org>; council@co.whatcom.wa.us <council@co.whatcom.wa.us>; Satpal Sidhu <ssidhu@co.whatcom.wa.us>; phab@co.whatcom.wa.us <phab@co.whatcom.wa.us>; Health <health@co.whatcom.wa.us>; G. CC. Immigration Board <immigrationboard@cob.org>