RESOLUTION BY THE SACRAMENTO CITY COUNCIL AFFIRMING CIVIL LIBERTIES AND OPPOSING THE INFRINGEMENT OF SUCH LIBERTIES BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
WHEREAS, the City of Sacramento is the capitol of California, the most diverse state in the United States; and
WHEREAS, the City of Sacramento is proud of its national reputation as the most integrated city in the United States and as a model of tolerance for the state and for the nation; and
WHEREAS, the diverse population of the City of Sacramento includes immigrants, students, farm workers, union members and other men and women of various ancestry, color, ethnicity, national origin, ages, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, physical and mental disability, and religion whose contributions to the community are vital to its economy, culture, and civic character; and
WHEREAS, on previous occasions the people of Sacramento, including its elected officials, law enforcement, and community leaders have gathered together in unity to affirm solidarity with victims of hate crimes and to denounce hate violence; and
WHEREAS, the preservation of civil liberties is crucial to the political and social health of the community, the state, and the nation; and
WHEREAS federal laws and policies were hastily adopted in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks which threaten fundamental rights and cherished liberties; and
WHEREAS, that federal legislation known as the USA PATRIOT ACT was passed by Congress without sufficient study or debate and gives the federal government unprecedented powers that threaten the civil rights of all Sacramento residents and especially those community members of Arab descent or Muslim faith as well as immigrants and those who question government policies; and
WHEREAS, the Sacramento City Council believes that there is no inherent conflict between national security and the preservation of liberty; and
WHEREAS, notwithstanding the Sacramento city Council's conerns about the USA PATRIOT Act as expressed in this Resolution, the Sacramento City Council acknowledges and commends the Office of the US AG for the Eastern District of California for its diligent and sincere efforts to uphold the US Constituiton and the laws of this nation in a respectful, lawful and nondiscriminatory manner.
WHEREAS, more than 200 other patriotic communities throughout California and the United States have enacted resolutions reaffirming support for civil rights and civil liberties in the face of government policies that threaten these core American values;
BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED BY THE SACRAMENTO CITY COUNCIL that
THE CITY OF SACRAMENTO REAFFIRMS its strong support for fundamental constitutional rights and its opposition to federal measures that infringe on these rights; and
THE CITYOF SACRAMENTO REAFFIRMS its strong support for the rights of immigrants and opposes measures that single out individuals for legal scrutiny based on their country of origin, religion, or immigration status; and
THE CITY OF SACRAMENTO calls on agencies and employees of the city not to engage in any activities that would violate any city ordinance or the laws and constitution of the State of California or of the United States; and
THE CITY OF SACRAMENTO calls upon the Sacramento public schools to provide notice to individuals whose education records have been obtained by law enforcement agents pursuant to section 507 of the USA PATRIOT ACT; and
THE CITY OF SACRAMENTO calls upon public libraries to post in a prominent place within the library a notice warning patrons that under section 215 of the USA PATRIOT ACT records or books and other materials borrowed from the library secretly may be obtained by federal agents; and
THE CITY OF SACRAMENTO reaffirms its commitment to unbiased policing and endorses the principle that no law enforcement or other city agency may profile or discriminate against any person on the basis of ancestry, color, ethnicity, national origin, ages, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, physical or mental disability, or religion.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this resolution be transmitted to United States Senators Diane Feinstein and Barbara Boxer and Congressman Robert Matsui along with a letter urging them to monitor federal anti-terrorism tactics and work to repeal those provisions of the USA PATRIOT ACT and other laws and policies that infringe on the rights and liberties of the residents of the City of Sacramento.