Alexandria Poet Laureate Cristi Donoso says that her future work will focus on the immigrant experience in the city.
Donoso has lived in Alexandria for more than a decade and has so far written four poems as poet laureate. Her work, which includes the city’s birthday poem that she read onstage to thousands last month, can be seen on the Office of the Arts website and her personal website.
The Alexandria Sheriff’s Office has turned over 35 inmates in the city jail to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) this year to date, and a local group wants the practice to stop.
Advocacy group Grassroots Alexandria says that the Sheriff is cooperating with ICE, and risks losing the respect of his community. In contrast, the Sheriff’s Office says it must transfer inmates in compliance with federal law. The number of Alexandria inmates transferred to ICE custody was recently revealed in a July 15 Freedom of Information Act request from Grassroots Alexandria.
City Council has released more than $120,000 in reserve funding to the Alexandria Health Department.
On Tuesday (July 1), Council approved the one-time funding to support the city’s Healthy Homes Action Plan, immigrant and refugee resource programs, and expansion of the ALX Breathes program. AHD lost the funds, which were from a federal COVID-19 grant earlier this year.
What a week it’s been in Alexandria. Here’s our recap of top stories.
ALXnow had its highest single-day visitor count ever on Thursday (June 12), with more than 53,000 views, following a report that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is preparing to deploy tactical units to Northern Virginia and four major cities across the country.
Northern Virginia is reportedly among the “five cities run by Democratic leaders” that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is preparing to deploy tactical units to, according to MSNBC.
Citing two unnamed sources “familiar with the planning of future ICE operations,” MSNBC reported that ICE is preparing to deploy tactical response teams in New York City, Seattle, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Northern Virginia.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced this week the arrest of a 40-year-old Salvadoran woman in Alexandria on Feb. 25.
Silvia Lorana Bonilla-De Jandres was arrested as part of an investigation by the Virginia State Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. She was arrested more than a month ago, on the same day that a 41-year-old Salvadoran woman was arrested by ICE in Alexandria.
Some Alexandria families are bracing for potential immigration enforcement following a wave of executive orders signed by President Donald Trump in his first days back in office.
While there have been no confirmed reports of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity in Alexandria, local advocacy groups say immigrant families are preparing for the worst.
Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) Superintendent Melanie Kay-Wyatt made a small clarifying addendum to a message released last month about how the school division handles immigration concerns.
Last month, Kay-Wyatt sent a letter to community members saying all children have a right to attend ACPS schools regardless of the immigration status of the students or their families. Kay-Wyatt also noted, though, that ACPS “is obligated to comply with all lawful orders and warrants from any law enforcement entity, including ICE.”
Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins says that recent immigration enforcement raids in nearby jurisdictions have resulted in “fear, confusion, and concern,” and that the city won’t assist federal investigators.
In a statement posted on the city website today, the Democrat mayor said that Alexandria will always be a welcoming community where “all residents are supported, respected, and valued.”
With President Donald Trump removing restrictions preventing Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from raiding schools, Alexandria Superintendent Melanie Kay-Wyatt laid out the ways Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) are protected from ICE but also exceptions families should be aware of.
The message comes after a full-throated rebuke of ICE activities at school to the fullest extent allowable by law by Fairfax County Public Schools leadership. Kay-Wyatt’s message similarly noted that the schools can help shield children to an extent, but reaffirmed that ACPS “is obligated to comply with all lawful orders and warrants from any law enforcement entity, including ICE.
Can Republican Celianna Gunderson shake up the Alexandria City Council with a win this November?
While she’s still learning the issues, Gunderson says that she would not have voted to approve a recent 2.5-cent tax increase.
