Kennewick Civic Leader Wants City to Not Honor Federal Immigration Laws

A Kennewick City Councilman and a Latino civic leader have collaborated to write  a proposal that would make Kennewick an "inclusive" city when it comes to immigrants.

According to the Tri-City Herald, Councilman Bob Parks and Leo Perales have discussed a resolution that the city has agreed to consider.

Parks, who got in hot water for posting a Facebook meme about building a wall on social media that angered Latinos last year, and Perales, want the resolution to say Kennewick is an inclusive community that honors the diverse contributions of all it's residents, and it would include undocumented immigrants.

Perales was part of a coalition who opposed Park's social media post. According to sources, their protests prompted the city to create a diversity commission.

Parks and Perales say they don't agree on everything, but agree on many principles. The council voted 4-3 to consider and study the resolution with the diversity commission.

The draft of the resolution however, has a passage that says Kennewick "will not honor or enforce federal immigration laws."  Parks said he plans to edit that passage of the resolution.

None of the cities in the state, other than Seattle, have declared they will openly defy federal immigration law. Seattle has several policies on the books stating so, and they resist federal immigration efforts. A Sunnyside man has started a petition trying to get the city to become a sanctuary city.