AIS Statement: What It Really Means to Keep America Safe for Immigrant Survivors

Safety means centering survivors and our principles

“Can you just reprogram yourself and see us as humans, as women? A little bit of mercy.” 
— Marisa, U.S. citizen victim of an ICE raid on her home in Oklahoma City.

May 2, 2025 — This week, the White House issued two new Executive Orders claiming to make this country safer when in fact they do the opposite.  

We’re not going to let that happen.

This administration’s call for increased militarization of law enforcement and retribution against cities and states with sanctuary policies comes on the heels of increased threats to services and protections for survivors of domestic and gender-based violence, putting immigrant survivors and their families at risk of falling through the cracks. Immigrant survivors know that this is not what safety looks like. Safety means being protected from harm and is rooted in ensuring survivors have the support they need. 

Safety is not accomplished by attacking sanctuary jurisdictions that choose to build community trust with local law enforcement or by ramping up increasingly aggressive and militarized policing methods. The recent experience of “Marisa,” a U.S. citizen in Oklahoma City whose home was raided and property confiscated as part of a search warrant for another person, exemplifies the traumatic impact of indiscriminate and overly aggressive immigration enforcement. Watching such incidents unfold across the country contributes to the chilling effect that deters immigrant survivors from reaching out for help out of fear of immigration enforcement. Actions like these do not promote safety. 

Rather, safety means making sure all survivors feel like they can reach out for help, without fear that calling the police, or going to the hospital or courthouse will lead to their arrest and removal from this country. Safety means expanding access to shelters, legal services, therapeutic healing, and economic justice. It means a safety net that reflects and respects the differences in language, age, race, immigration status, and sexual orientation among survivors. Safety means access for all, because when one survivor fears asking for help, all communities become less safe. 

Decades of bipartisan Congressional support for the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) acknowledge the importance of holistic care and approaches to justice for survivors. Increasing the militarization of our state and local police forces while threatening sanctuary cities and federal funding for victim services, however, threaten to dismantle the very ecosystem of care authorized by the law. 

Once again, in these executive orders, the administration relies heavily on the specter of the “criminal alien” as justification for actions and policies that will impoverish and threaten the lives of immigrant survivors and make our communities less safe. The Alliance for Immigrant Survivors (AIS) does not endorse the increased militarization of the police and the threats to welcoming cities as solutions to violence against women in this country. Immigrant survivors and their families are members of our shared communities and human beings deserving of dignity, safety, and due process. Centering these principles is what safety means.

Find current resources regarding Executive Orders and other policies on our Resource List and join our email list for regular updates.