Costa Mesa leaders are looking to take a stronger stand against an aggressive federal deportation dragnet amidst increasing reports of neighborhoods frozen in fear of getting caught up in the widespread ICE sweeps that started this summer.
That fear has left some families in town sheltering at home – scared to go to school, to buy groceries and even visit the doctor, with some people missing work and forfeiting their paycheeks in hopes they won’t be separated from their loved ones.
“It hurts to see my community being attacked for the color of their skin, our football fields without kids, our streets without kids playing with a ball, our fruit vendors in hiding,” said one resident in Spanish at Tuesday’s city council meeting in Costa Mesa.
“People can’t report domestic violence and criminals out of fear,” she said, adding that one 13-year-old kid’s dad was deported not for being a criminal but for working at a car wash.
For about an hour late into the night, other activists and residents also shared how the terror has left life for a lot of families in Costa Mesa at a standstill and pleaded with city council members to step up and support them with rent and legal aid funds.
City council members decided to do just that – instead of solely adopting two resolutions they agendized in response to the immigration sweeps that kicked up roughly two months ago.
On Tuesday, City council members voted 5-0 to direct staff to donate $100,000 towards an immigrant aid fund, look into launching a legal immigrant defense aid fund and bring back a discussion on joining a lawsuit against the deportation sweeps.
City Councilman Mike Buley was absent from the meeting and City Councilman Jeff Pettis left before the vote.
Mayor John Stephens, who successfully called for the direction, said the city had a rough budget year but noted plenty in reserves.
“We need to put our money where our mouth is,” he said at Tuesday’s meeting. “We’re not at this point.”
Stephens’ direction comes on the heels of the former city attorney Lori Ann Farrell Harrison filing a lawsuit against the city claiming she was fired after she brought forward complaints about Stephens discriminating against employees and engaging in quid pro quo politics.
[Read: Former Costa Mesa City Manager Alleges Unlawful Firing]
It also comes after activists and residents showed up to a meeting last month demanding leaders step up and help impacted families with financial support and legal resources as well as stand against the ICE sweeps with tangible actions and not just symbolic gestures.
Others showed up to the same meeting applauding the deportation sweeps and praising ICE – leading to argumentative clashes in the council chambers.
[Read: Will Costa Mesa Provide Aid to Families Impacted by ICE Raids?]
Roberto Herrera, Leadership Development Director with Resilience OC, called on officials Tuesday night to track at-fault evictions amid the fear and to create a legal defense aid fund for immigrants caught up in the sweeps.
In a Wednesday text message, Herrera said Resilience OC was instrumental in getting Santa Ana to start their immigration defense fund – the first city in OC to create one.
“Now in 2025 amidst a similar backdrop, Costa Mesa becomes the second city in OC to invest in protecting due process rights in immigration court,” he wrote.
“The vote last night demonstrates the courage of the council but also the resiliency of the community to come out and demand more from our local governments at a time when so many of us feel left out. I encourage other cities to follow suit.”
Sandra De Anda, Director of Policy and Legal Strategy at the OC Rapid Response Network, said since February there has been an uptick in ICE activity in Costa Mesa but as of August city leaders have been absent.
She also called on city leaders to create a legal aid fund, join a lawsuit challenging deportation sweeps in Southern California and request information from the federal government on immigration enforcement activity in Costa Mesa.
“Tonight, you have the power to do more than make a statement,” De Anda said at the meeting. “You can take a stand, a stand in true solidarity with your immigrant communities, all of whom enrich the fabric of this city every day.”
Costa Mesa Responds to ICE Sweeps
Councilman Manual Chavez said it has been the saddest summer of his life because of how much quieter it has been in his community and due to visible lack of Latinos at community events.
“It is frightening to be in this position, knowing that whatever we do may probably get the eye of the federal government. But just because that fear exists doesn’t mean this isn’t an important thing to do,” he said at the meeting.
Councilwoman Andrea Marr also called on staff to bring back options for tracking at-fault evictions and submit a request for detention information from the Department of Homeland Security.
“I’m just really proud of the fact that – this council – this is what we came up with in short order. Like, no, it’s not the most comprehensive policy. I wish there was more I could do to single handedly constrain ICE but I mean, damn if a city is going to take some action – this is the city I want to be a part of,” she said at the meeting.
Earlier in the meeting, Councilwoman Arlis Reynolds and Marr pointed to the “Enough For All” fund by a number of churches including Redemption Church helping support families impacted by the deportation sweeps.
The city’s expected $100,000 donation is expected to go to the church initiative that first stepped up to help families during the COVID pandemic. It is unclear where the money will come from.
City council members also approved a resolution and letter supporting a state bill, dubbed SB 805, that aims to require all law enforcement agencies including federal immigration agents to wear visible IDs when operating in California.
And they approved a resolution stating the city’s police department doesn’t assist in immigration enforcement and that city officials are looking at programs and partnerships to inform, protect and support families impacted by deportation sweeps.
That same night, Santa Ana City Manager Alvaro Nuñez publicly announced the launch of their own $100,000 immigrant aid fund approved last month – now being dubbed Santa Ana Ayuda Sin Fronteras and aimed at helping people pay rent and utilities.
[Read: As ICE Raids Continue in OC, Santa Ana Creates $100,000 Aid Fund for Impacted]
OC Cities Increasingly Look to Challenge ICE Sweeps in Court
Tuesday’s meeting comes on the heels of a panel of federal appeals court judges upholding a district court decision temporarily halting immigration enforcement officers from making warrantless arrests in parts of Southern California solely based on factors like race.
[Read: 9th Circuit Judges Uphold Block on Southern California ICE Sweeps]
The ruling stems from a lawsuit, spearheaded by the ACLU, alleging immigration agents are racially profiling people to make warrantless stops – claims Department of Homeland Security officials have repeatedly denied.
Now, Costa Mesa City Council members are expected to join a growing list of cities in the region looking to sign on to the lawsuit.
Officials in both Santa Ana and Anaheim have voted to join the ACLU’s legal challenge against the widespread immigration sweeps since the temporary restraining order first went into effect in July.
Irvine City Councilmembers may also soon consider joining the lawsuit.
[Read: Orange County’s Largest Cities Take a Stand Against ICE Sweeps]
They are not the only ones.
At their July 15 meeting, Fullerton City Councilwoman Shana Charles – with support from Councilman Ahmed Zahra – called on her colleagues to consider joining the ACLU lawsuit at their Aug. 5 meeting.
But that meeting was cancelled.
Charles said she got an email from the city manager announcing that Mayor Fred Jung and himself cancelled the meeting because of the annual National Night Out event and because there was nothing time sensitive on the agenda.
In a Friday Facebook post, she called cancellation of two recent meetings a dereliction of duty and in a Tuesday phone interview she said the city needs to stand up for its residents and join the lawsuit sooner than later.
“We are being specifically targeted. We are the sixth largest city in the county. We have very large populations of not just Latinx immigrants, but also Korean immigrants that are being targeted,” Charles said in a Tuesday phone interview.
“I really think that there’s strength in numbers and it matters. I mean, from my perspective, I would love to see all 34 cities in Orange County join together, but at the very least, the largest cities coming together is really important.”
Jung said the meeting was cancelled because it was a light agenda and council members have not had a chance to participate in the National Night Out event in the past due to meetings.
It’s an event that one resident in Costa Mesa said community members were too afraid to attend in their own city for fear of being caught up by ICE.
Jung also said in a Tuesday phone interview that he hadn’t seen Charles’ post and she is entitled to her opinion, adding that joining the ACLU lawsuit is a legal matter the city will consider in closed session.
“Everybody in our community has a right to remain and feel safe,” Jung said.
“I think that says enough about my opinion on the matter.”
Hosam Elattar is a Voice of OC reporter. Contact him at helattar@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @ElattarHosam.