Community groups and civil rights organizations respond to the city’s alarming decision
MIAMI, FL — Despite overwhelming opposition from residents, community advocates, and civil rights organizations the Miami City Commission voted to approve a 287(g) agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), allowing local police to act as immigration agents — a controversial and dangerous move that could have devastating consequences for immigrant families across the city.
The vote passed 3-2, with Commissioners Joe Carollo, Ralph Rosado, and Miguel Angel Gabela backing the measure, aligning with the anti-immigrant agenda pushed by Governor DeSantis and the Trump administration.
“This is a shameful day for Miami,” said Dariel Gomez, Statewide Organizer with the ACLU of Florida. “With their vote, commissioners chose fear over facts, and division over unity. This agreement will not make us safer — it will only spread fear and isolate the very people who make our city strong.”
Under the agreement, select City of Miami police officers will undergo limited training to enforce federal immigration law, including initiating immigration status inquiries and helping with deportation efforts. Federal agents, not local police, typically carry out these duties — and civil rights organizations warn that the delegation of these powers has historically resulted in widespread racial profiling, constitutional violations, and costly litigation. It will also divert local resources designated to investigate serious crimes in the community towards federal deportation efforts –a move that will endanger all Miamians.
“287(g) doesn’t belong in any city, but especially not in Miami — a place shaped by immigrants, built by immigrants, and powered by immigrants,” said Tessa Petit, Executive Director of the Florida Immigrant Coalition. “More than half of our residents are foreign-born. The commissioners who voted to implement this ruthless program have turned their back on the very community they were put into office to protect. They are turning our diversity into a target.”
Hundreds of people, including local clergy, students, attorneys, and longtime residents, filled City Hall to speak against the measure. They shared their grave concerns about the program, the liability it poses for the city, and the detrimental impact it will have on communities, reminding commissioners that state law does not require cities to opt in.
Still, a majority of commissioners voted to adopt the agreement.
“Miami deserves solutions that protect the very people that make our city run, said Ivanna Gonzalez, Chief Campaigns Officer of Florida Rising. “Not wasteful programs that silence, surveillance, and separate us. By approving 287(g), these commissioners have unleashed a wave of state-sanctioned xenophobia and undermined years of the city's efforts to build trust between residents and law enforcement. They’ve opened the door to harassment, raids, and deportations that will tear families apart and destabilize neighborhoods.”
“Young people across Miami are watching this moment closely — and we see it for what it is: part of a dangerous trend of criminalizing our communities instead of investing in them,” said Michidael Ceard, Organizing Director of Florida Student Power. “287(g) doesn’t make us safer. It deepens fear, divides families, and tells immigrant youth that they don’t belong in the very city they help lead, learn, and live in. We deserve better.”
Advocates warn that the city now faces increased exposure to legal liability, budgetary strain, and reputational damage. In other jurisdictions, 287(g) agreements have led to federal investigations and lawsuits, costing local governments millions of dollars.
“We may have lost this vote, but we have not lost the fight,” said Jose Dominguez, Community Organizer at Power U Center for Social Change. “We will continue to organize, educate folks about their rights, and demand better for our city. Miami’s future is immigrant. It always has been — and we won’t let that future be erased.”
"Florida thrives on its diversity and the resilience of its immigrant communities, from Haiti, Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, Colombia, the larger Caribbean and Latin America, and beyond,” stated Paul Christian Namphy, the Political Director at Family Action Network Movement. “In addition to the moral scars of tearing families apart, and sending loved ones to harm’s way in their countries of origin, deportation efforts will devastate the economy of Florida. 21% of the population in Florida is foreign-born, contributing over $100 billion in spending power annually. Immigrants, including Haitians, are critical to sectors like agriculture, construction, and healthcare, and define Florida’s identity as a multicultural haven. We reject the divisive and xenophobic rhetoric and actions of decision-makers in Tallahassee and in the White House. Now is the time to protect these communities, honor our shared values, and ensure a future built on dignity, respect, justice, and opportunity for all.”
“We are disheartened to know a decision made by just 3 lawmakers will cause irreparable harm to thousands of families who call Miami home,” says Santra Denis, Executive Director at the Miami Workers Center. “The leadership and courage we saw yesterday was not from the commissioners on the daïs elected to serve, but on the people’s side of the daïs — the workers, tenants, mothers, and students using their voice to stand in solidarity with their immigrant neighbors. This fight is far from over. The people will not forget!“
“Everyone who showed up to that hearing proved what we already know,” said Ana Sofia Pelaez, co-founder of Miami Freedom Project. “Miami is a place of refuge, culture, and resilience. Our community showed up, spoke out, and refused to let fear drive our local policies. The City of Miami commission failed its constituents today, but our work continues.”
Community groups plan to continue organizing in support of policies that promote safety and justice for all.
