LOS ANGELES October 5, 2017 – California Senate President pro Tempore Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles) released the following statement on the signing of Senate Bill 54, the California Values Act:

“The California Values Act is now law of the land, from San Diego to Eureka, from the Nevada border to the Pacific Ocean

“California’s local law enforcement cannot be commandeered and used by the Trump Administration to tear families apart, undermine our safety, and wreak havoc on our economy.

“The California Values Act will limit immigration enforcement actions at public schools, hospitals and courthouses where all California residents should feel safe, regardless of immigration status.

“I want to thank Governor Brown for his engagement on SB 54 and his understanding of its importance to the millions of California residents it seeks to protect. I also want to thank the many organizations and law enforcement who supported SB 54 and work tirelessly every day to protect and uplift those who have contributed so much to our culture and economy.

“The signing of SB 54 comes at a critical time in our nation’s history.

“With the election of Donald Trump, we have witnessed a growing racial divide we have not seen in decades.

“Over and over again the President has deployed fear and division to advance his ambitions. The result of this constant barrage of dog whistles is a sickening rise in racism turning American against American.

“We will not stand idly by as President Trump and Attorney General Jeff Sessions seek to divide this nation by scapegoating honest, hardworking families and casting immigrants as threats to be neutralized.

“Californians simply will not divert its public safety assets to stalk law-abiding immigrants and undermine the safety in our communities in the process.

“The California Values Act won’t stop ICE from trolling our streets — it will not provide full sanctuary — but it will put a kink in Trump’s perverse and inhumane deportation machine.

“California is building a wall of justice against President Trump’s xenophobic, racist and ignorant immigration policies.

“We will resist and we will overcome, and we will prove to the nation there is a hopeful future for our country where we cherish diversity and respect our immigrant heritage.”