‘I'm not comfortable': ICE arrests causing fear for Cornelius residents
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Fear exists for many around the state after at least five local asylum seekers by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at the Portland Immigration Courthouse.
In Washington County, leaders address the effects on their community outside the Centro Cultural Community Center in Cornelius.
'ICE has no place in our neighborhoods,' said Cornelius City Councilor Angeles Godinez.
More than half of the city of Cornelius's population is Hispanic or Latino according to the city's
The city says the fear of ICE raids has a ripple effect in the community.
'As public officials, we are legally and morally obligated to protect the rights of all residents, regardless of their immigration status,' Godinez said.
Local leaders say people in their community tell them they're afraid to attend public events, go to work or even call 911 during emergencies.
'When people are afraid of their own government, they stop calling the police. They stop going to the doctor. They disappear from public life,' said Washington County Commissioner Nafisa Fai.
Metro Councilor Juan Carlos Gonzalez says his family knows all too well the stress ICE can cause.
'When my dad immigrated to the United States, he came here without papers,' Gonzalez said.
He said a few years ago his father became a US citizen. But they fear for the rest of the community.
'For many folks that have an experience like me, we know that our existence and our families, their right to belong, is being questioned and that's something I'm not comfortable with,' Gonzalez said.
City, county and community leaders said they are working with the local police to ensure the community's safety.
'The police have been briefed. And also we have many committees and including some people here at Centro that have been working with police and on various different commissions,' Godinez said.
Oregon is classified as a sanctuary state, meaning its law enforcement will not work with ICE. That's something President Donald Trump has openly criticized, claiming their policies of not enforcing immigration law put the safety of American citizens in jeopardy.
'And let me be clear, city officials in Cornelius will not be agents of ICE. We are not here to divide families. We are here to serve them,' Gonzalez said.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
UPI
11 minutes ago
- UPI
Trump cancels U.S.-Canadian trade talks over tech taxes
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney meets with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House on May 6. Trump on Friday suspended trade talks due to Canada's new Digital Services Tax. File Photo by Francis Chung/UPI | License Photo June 28 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump cited potential Canadian taxes on U.S. tech companies as his reason for ending trade talks with Canada on Friday. The tech taxes on Amazon, Google, Meta and other U.S. tech firms are due on Monday, and Trump said it is a deal-breaker. "We have just been informed that Canada ... has just announced that they are putting a Digital Services Tax on our American technology companies," Trump said in a Truth Social post on Friday. He called the tax a "direct and blatant attack on our country" and accused Canada of "copying the European Union, which has done the same thing." "We are hereby terminating all discussions on trade with Canada, effective immediately," Trump said. His administration in the coming week will notify Canadian officials of the tariff that it will have to pay to do business in the United States, Trump added. Trump last week attended the G7 economic trade summit hosted by Canada and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and sought common ground on trade talks, The Washington Post reported. Officials at U.S. tech firms oppose the Canadian tax, the amount of which is based on the revenues generated by Canadians' use of e-commerce sites, social media and the sales of data. All tech companies that generate more than $14.59 million from such services would be subject to the new 3% Digital Services Tax. The tax is retroactive to 2022 and could cost U.S.-based tech firms up to $3 billion, NBC News reported. Upon learning of Trump halting trade talks, Canadian officials on Friday limited U.S. steel imports and placed a 50% surcharge on steel imports that surpass the quota. Canadian Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said the surcharge will help to protect Canadian steel against what he called "unjust U.S. tariffs." He said the Canadian government is prepared to take additional actions, if necessary.
The Hill
41 minutes ago
- The Hill
Updated Senate bill slashes wind and solar incentives – and adds a new tax
An updated draft of the Senate's megabill text slashes tax incentives for wind and solar energy – and adds a new tax on future wind and solar projects. The initial draft released by Senate Republicans earlier this month cut the credit for any wind and solar projects that did not 'begin construction' by certain dates, while the latest version bases incentives on when projects actually begin producing electricity — a much higher bar to clear. The first draft gave any project that began construction this year full credit, any project that began construction next year 60 percent credit and any project that began construction in 2027 20 percent of the credit, before they were phased out thereafter. The new legislation instead says that the credits will only apply to facilities that begin producing electricity before the end of 2027. In addition, it imposes a new tax on some wind and solar projects that are placed in service after 2027. The projects that will be taxed if a certain percentage of the value of their components come from China. The Democrats' 2022 Inflation Reduction Act included hundreds of billions of dollars in tax credits for low-carbon energy sources, including renewable energy. These subsidies were expected to massively reduce the U.S.' planet warming emissions. The GOP's cuts to the credits are expected to severely curtail those gains. If they pass, the cuts represent a win for the party's right flank, which has pushed for major cuts to the credits, and a loss for it's more moderate wing which has called for a slower phaseout. The renewables lobby slammed the changes as hampering the sector. 'In what can only be described as 'midnight dumping,' the Senate has proposed a punitive tax hike targeting the fastest-growing sectors of our energy industry. It is astounding that the Senate would intentionally raise prices on consumers rather than encouraging economic growth and addressing the affordability crisis facing American households,' Jason Grumet, CEO of the American Clean Power Association, said in a written statement. 'These new taxes will strand hundreds of billions of dollars in current investments, threaten energy security, and undermine growth in domestic manufacturing and land hardest on rural communities who would have been the greatest beneficiaries of clean energy investment,' he added.
Yahoo
44 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump Demands Republicans Crack Down on Nonprofits That Protest ICE
President Donald Trump voiced support Saturday for new legislation aiming to punish groups linked to the June protests in Los Angeles against the administration's aggressive immigration raids and arrests. The legislation, offered by Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.), would make nonprofits involved in supposedly 'organizing the riots' ineligible for federal funding or tax-exempt status. At the center of the proposed bill is an immigrants rights group based in L.A. that denies any wrongdoing and says the accusations are false. 'CONGRESSMAN KEVIN KILEY'S, 'NO TAX DOLLARS FOR RIOTS' legislation, should be passed immediately,' Trump posted on Truth Social on Saturday. 'I am hereby instructing my Administration not to pay ANY money to these radicalized groups, regardless of the legislation. They get paid to incite riots, burn down or destroy a city, then come back to the trough to get money to help rebuild it. NO MORE MONEY!!!' The text of the bill has not been publicly released. Kiley framed the protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as a threat. 'The violence we have witnessed in Los Angeles is a threat to the safety of our communities and federal officers, and it undermines democracy by obstructing the policies of a duly elected president from being implemented.' Kiley said in a statement. 'We need better tools to deter and punish this lawless and anti-democratic behavior.' The anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles began this month in response to the Trump administration's campaign of worksite immigration raids and courthouse arrests, which is reportedly being conducted at the demand of White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller. Authorities have used flash-bang grenades, rubber bullets, and pepper balls on protesters, who have largely been non-violent. Trump used the protests as the basis for federalizing and deploying thousands of National Guard troops as well as hundreds of Marines. 'We have the IRS here that's helping us track how these violent protesters are funded,' Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said. 'What NGO is out there? What unions? What other individuals may be funding these violent perpetrators?' Kiley argues the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) 'played a pivotal role in enabling the riots.' He alleges that the group broadcast federal officers' locations in real-time, and that several of the officers were assaulted with bricks and Molotov cocktails. Two people were charged with possession of Molotov cocktails, but there is no evidence they were tied to CHIRLA. 'They're saying the most vicious lies [about] who we are and what we do,' CHIRLA's Executive Director Angélica Salas told CBS News. 'My bill,' Kiley said Thursday on the House floor, 'will assure that an organization like this whose officers are convicted of assaulting, resisting, or impeding federal officers, or of organizing, promoting, and encouraging participating in or carrying on a riot… loses their nonprofit status and is ineligible for federal funding going forward,' Earlier this month, Sen. Josh Hawley, (R-Mo.), who is chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism, launched an investigation into CHIRLA's 'alleged role in financing and materially supporting the coordinated protests and riots' in Los Angeles. 'While peaceful protest is a cornerstone of American democracy, these demonstrations have escalated into lawless mob actions,' he wrote in a letter to the organization demanding more information. He noted that CHIRLA reportedly 'received $34 million in state funding.' Their 2023 tax return shows they received this amount in government grants. The organization previously had a $450,000 contract with the Department of Homeland Security for 'citizenship education and training.' DHS said it terminated this contract and intended to withhold $101,000 in funds that had not yet been paid to the group. 'Credible reporting now suggests that your organization has provided logistical support and financial resources to individuals engaged in these disruptive actions,' Hawley said. 'Let me be clear: Bankrolling civil unrest is not protected speech. It is aiding and abetting criminal conduct.' Salas, who leads CHIRLA, was a speaker at a press conference on June 6, when the first protests against ICE began, but that seems to be the extent of the group's involvement. 'Our community is under attack and is being terrorized,' she told the crowd. 'These are workers, these are fathers, these are mothers, and this has to stop. Immigration enforcement that is terrorizing our families throughout this country and picking up our people that we love must stop now.' She remains steadfast. 'We categorically reject any allegation that our work as an organization now and during the past 39 years providing services to immigrants and their families violates the law,' Salas said in a statement. 'Our mission is rooted in non-violent advocacy, community safety, and democratic values. We will not be intimidated for standing with immigrant communities and documenting the inhumane manner that our community is being targeted with the assault by the raids, the unconstitutional and illegal arrests, detentions, and the assault on our First Amendment rights.' More from Rolling Stone Trump Admin Says ICE Agents are the Real Victims Amid Violent Immigration Raids Trump's Military Birthday Parade 'Illegally' Used Hit Song: Cease-and-Desist Letter Florida GOP Hawks Merch for Brutal 'Alligator Alcatraz' Migrant Detention Camp Best of Rolling Stone The Useful Idiots New Guide to the Most Stoned Moments of the 2020 Presidential Campaign Anatomy of a Fake News Scandal The Radical Crusade of Mike Pence
