Abstract
Cities often seek to mitigate the highly precarious situation of Illegalized (or undocumented) migrants. In this context, “sanctuary cites” are an innovative urban response to exclusionary national policies. In this article, we expand the geographical scope of sanctuary policies and practices beyond Canada, the USA, and the UK, where the policies and practices are well-known. In particular, we explore corresponding urban initiatives in Chile, Germany, and Spain. We find that varying kinds of urban-sanctuary policies and practices permit illegalized migrants to cope with their situations in particular national contexts. However, different labels, such as “city of refuge,” “commune of reception,” or “solidarity city” are used to describe such initiatives. While national, historical, and geopolitical contexts distinctly shape local efforts to accommodate illegalized migrants, recognizing similarities across national contexts is important to develop globally-coordinated and internationally-inspired responses at the urban scale.
Highlights
In light of the Trump administration’s threats to cut funding to sanctuary cities, the mayors of Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and many other US cities have reaffirmed their commitment to accommodating migrants who do not possess full federal status (Robbins, 2017)
In the UK, cities of sanctuary, such as Sheffield, are welcoming refugees. These cities respond to the disjuncture between exclusionary national migration and residency policies, and the need to be inclusive at the local scale
Rather, illegalized migrants remain subject to detection, and possible detention and deportation even in sanctuary cities (American Immigration Council, 2015; Tramonte, 2011)
Summary
In light of the Trump administration’s threats to cut funding to sanctuary cities, the mayors of Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and many other US cities have reaffirmed their commitment to accommodating migrants who do not possess full federal status (Robbins, 2017). In the UK, cities of sanctuary, such as Sheffield, are welcoming refugees These cities respond to the disjuncture between exclusionary national migration and residency policies, and the need to be inclusive at the local scale. Sanctuary cities are transforming urban society in various ways: are municipal governments defying exclusionary national immigration policies and citizenship laws, but urban sanctuary communities are changing the discourse of migration and belonging and are reimagining the city as an inclusive space. Recognizing the synergies between urban sanctuary policies and practises in different parts of the world is vital to facilitate international exchange of municipal policy options and ideas, and encourage international networking among urban policy makers, activists, organizers, and other stake holders In this way, this article aligns with a recent call made from a predominantly US perspective to think of sanctuary in global terms (Carney, Gomez, Mitchell, & Vannini, 2017)
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