The city of Aurora, Colorado, a part of the Denver metroplex, voted no on taking in buses of illegal aliens. The resolution was the Aurora City Council’s way of saying the city will refuse any buses that may come from Denver as that sanctuary city struggles to provide services for illegal aliens.
The resolution is mostly symbolic with no real enforcement measures attached. It was approved Monday night by a 7-3 vote. The final resolution was scaled back from its earlier version which drew sharp criticism from activists for homeless and immigrant communities.
It boils down to resources. There aren’t enough to handle a flood of illegal aliens arriving in the city. Aurora officials don’t want to go the way of Denver which has begun to stop some services for its residents to fund services for illegal aliens. Legal residents are given the short end of the deal with illegals receiving services while legal residents experience cuts. That sounds like an incentive for illegal aliens to come to Denver. They get top priority.
The approved measure states that while “Aurora is proud of its identity as the most diverse and global city in the state,” the city cannot finance an influx of migrants and homeless people who are being “systematically” transported into the city.
City Council members Francoise Bergan, Curtis Gardner, Stephanie Hancock, Danielle Jurinsky, Angela Lawson, Steve Sundberg and Dustin Zvonek voted for the resolution. Council members Alison Coombs, Ruben Medina and Crystal Murillo voted against it.
Jurinsky, Lawson and Bergan all said that they were prompted to support the measure after news that Denver was having to scale back city services after spending millions on caring for a wave of immigrants over the past year. Some Denver estimates say upwards of 40,000 immigrants have come to Denver since last January. Many were bused here from Texas by officials there, Denver officials have said.
Aurora likes to tout its diversity as a city but it wants to make clear that it is a non-sanctuary city. City officials have not released the number of illegal aliens living in Aurora but local school districts report at least a few thousand children of illegal immigrants are attending school there.
The resolution may have been spurred on by the problems that sanctuary cities are experiencing due to illegal immigration. It isn’t just the funds needed to provide human services, it is also the influx of crime that comes with the numbers. The stories of crimes committed by illegal aliens, especially violent crimes, are alarming. The increase isn’t a coincidence. Illegal immigrants break federal law just by entering the United States outside a legal port of entry. Venezuelans comprise a majority of the illegals being bussed to Denver. There is an increase in gang members from Venezuela coming into our country. The Biden border crisis is importing violent international gangs into the United States.
Aurora does not have any city-owned shelter or related infrastructure for illegals. It does fund two homeless organizations. One called Comitis receives $482,000 and Aurora Day Resource Center receives $200,000.
There was criticism from representatives of the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition. You notice there is no “illegal” immigration in its name. Immigration activists often conflate illegal immigration and legal immigration.
“[Aurora] is a city of immigrants. We love the cultures. We love the food. We love the multitude of languages that are spoken,” Mori said, mocking city lawmakers behind the measure. “If you have so much love for the culture, where is the love for the people?”
Julian Camera, community organizer with American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado, said the resolution “is concerning both morally and legally.”
And, of course, there were the usual charges of racism.
Being a city of legal immigrants is not being a city of illegal immigrants. Enjoying other cultures and languages is fine but it shouldn’t come at the expense of American culture. Legal immigrants should assimilate and contribute to communities. That no longer happens in some areas. Do we think that illegal aliens will strive to assimilate if their first act was to break U.S. immigration law as they illegally entered the country? That doesn’t seem to be happening.
