Amid Trump administration threats, Oak Park to remain a sanctuary city

Though President Donald Trump's administration has threatened to cut funding of so-called "sanctuary cities," Oak Park officials said they have no intention of backing down. On March 27, Attorney General Jeff Sessions threatened to strip some cities that have adopted "sanctuary" ordinances of government grants to be used for state and local law enforcement, the Washington Post reported. Sessions' announcement follows President Trump's executive order in January that gave the attorney general the authority to sanction any city that doesn't readily hand over undocumented immigrants for deportation. Oak Park passed its "welcoming village" ordinance on Feb. 6. It is designed to protect undocumented

immigrant community members from the federal government.
Even then, village officials were fully aware of such threats from the federal government. Former village trustee Adam Salzman said he was confident the village would continue to receive all the funds its entitled to "If the village has to pursue the funds to which it is entitled in court, there will be some powerful allies to partner with in that fight, most significantly the city of Chicago," Salzman said in February. "We're not alone in standing up for what is right."
Oak Park Mayor Anan Abu-Taleb reiterated those feelings following Sessions' remarks.
"My hope is the president does not follow up on the threats he is making, but our city and other cities have anticipated such a threat," Abu-Taleb said. "I am pretty optimistic and confident that we're going to be OK. That money is due to us, and we expect it. We also expect to stay as a sanctuary city."