Emergency Town Hall leads to Santa Barbara City Council Vote to Research Ways to Help Immigration Community
Tracy Lehr
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The Franklin Neighborhood Center was too small for the crowd trying to attend an emergency town hall on Tuesday.The overflowing audience watched and listened from outside via social media.
A majority of speakers said they saw the immigration raids coming and urged community leaders to stand with the immigrant community. One woman said that, for the first time in her life, she was looking over her shoulder for danger. Another said she had begun patrolling her own block.
The head of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce emphasized the need for solidarity, urging residents to stick together and protect local businesses.
Speakers also discussed the recent federal raids at Glass House Farms locations in Carpinteria and Camarillo, which led to the death of a farmworker and the detention of a veteran and CSUCI professor.
A faith leader also addressed the crowd.“Our community, our people who share this land with us—we get to stick up for one another,” said Pastor Leo Smith.
Santa Barbara Police Chief Kelly Ann Gordon told the crowd her officers are not typically notified by federal authorities when ICE operates in the community or when children are left behind.
She encouraged residents to call the department if they have concerns and reminded them that they do not have to open their doors to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. However, that didn’t stop ICE from breaking a car window in Carpinteria during an Enforcement and Removal Operation (ERO), she noted.
City Councilmembers, including the son of immigrants, pointed to federal enforcement funding as a key barrier to local action.
“Unfortunately, the federal government surpasses our authority. So even if we wanted to, we couldn’t do too much to stop them—other than provide services so that the community has something to fall back on,” said Councilmember Oscar Gutierrez.
No one spoke in favor of deportations. However, one speaker held up a book titled The 5 Basics Everyone Should Know About Immigration by Margaret Orchowski, also known as Peggy Sands. The book argues that the best option for someone receiving a deportation notice is to opt for voluntary departure by cooperating with authorities.
The Santa Barbara City Council voted to direct staff to explore ways to help, including approving an emergency declaration, funding the 805 Undocufund, and joining legal challenges.
Before the meeting, a Santa Barbara Police dog named Roz swept the Franklin Neighborhood Center grounds to ensure public safety.
The event was co-hosted by the 805 Immigration Coalition, which distributed bilingual flyers. A volunteer said racial profiling is happening in the region.Aja Forner shared that a driver was racially profiled on Ogan Road the previous day. He was asked for papers and, after proving he was a citizen, was followed by agents for another eight minutes. An Oxnard man said something similar happened to his father weeks earlier.
Councilmembers Oscar Gutierrez, Kristen Sneddon, and Wendy Santamaria called for the meeting in response to the July 10 raids, which resulted in more than 300 people being taken to detention facilities—most from Camarillo. Officials also found teenagers who appeared to be working at the Carpinteria location, though Glass House Farms denies employing minors. Detainees were initially held at a U.S. Customs facility on Cortez Circle in Camarillo before being transferred to downtown Los Angeles.
Attorney Andrea Anaya, who is representing five clients affected by the raids, met with them Monday in Los Angeles. She said their U.S.-born children were left wondering why their parents hadn’t come home. Donations to local nonprofits are intended to support those children.
During the meeting, Primitiva Hernandez, Director of 805 Undocufund, delivered a passionate call for stronger local government support. She said her four-person team, which covers three counties, is operating entirely on philanthropic funding while “approximately 500 families right now [are] waiting for financial assistance or philanthropy.” Hernandez criticized the limited public response, saying even $1 million in aid would be “crumbs,” and called for city and county support for rapid response training efforts. She also expressed frustration with bureaucratic red tape that prevents community organizing in city-funded spaces, pushing them to rely on churches instead. Volunteers, she said, have faced police intimidation while legally monitoring enforcement actions. Hernandez closed by urging leaders to accept discomfort as a catalyst for change: “If you guys are feeling uncomfortable, that is because it’s not working on you and you should continue feeling uncomfortable and showing up for our community.”
For more information visit https:www.805immigrant.org or https://805undocufund.org or https://causenow.org or https://www.santabarbaraca.gov