Akron officials in City Council chambers Feb. 9 condemned the tactics of U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement in the wake of the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. They railed against bills moving through Ohio’s Statehouse, saying forced collaboration with the agency was an affront to Akron’s autonomy, a waste of city resources and a danger to the city’s immigrants.
“We have no interest and no desire to take part” in ICE sweeps, said Akron Mayor Shammas Malik during the Public Safety Committee meeting earlier that day. “We’ve seen them stoke fear even here in Akron as we’ve talked to members of the immigrant and refugee community.”
Inside City Hall, an anti-ICE resolution passed unanimously that night…