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Council adopts resolution calling on ICE to release detainee and urging Congress to support welcoming policies
Summary
Philadelphia City Council adopted a resolution calling on ICE to release Sarirath 1 Van from the Moshannon Valley processing center and urging congressional members to champion welcoming immigration policies for formerly incarcerated noncitizens; public commenters and immigrant‑advocacy groups urged release and broader sanctuary protections.
Philadelphia City Council adopted resolution number 250138 calling on Immigration and Customs Enforcement to “immediately release Sarirath 1 Van from Moshening Valley Processing Center” and urging the city’s congressional delegation to promote welcoming immigration policies and second‑chance opportunities for formerly incarcerated noncitizens.
Council member Nicholas O'Rourke moved for adoption; the motion was properly seconded and the audio record shows the resolution was adopted. The clerk read the measure’s title before the vote.
Public comment preceding the vote included multiple speakers who urged council to pass the resolution and called for stronger protections for immigrants. Van Sam, who uses they/them pronouns and said they work with formerly incarcerated Southeast Asian immigrants, testified: “Punishment for these folks does not look like the indefinite detention until the deportation … It is a lifetime of punishment.” An English translation of testimony from Buck Chew described receiving a pardon from Governor Shapiro after a multi‑year advocacy effort and urged the city to afford others similar second chances.
Other witnesses representing immigrant‑advocacy networks, including Sam Chattin and the Defend Migrants Campaign Network, told council that deportations frequently separate families and that members of refugee and immigrant communities deserve a chance to remain in Philadelphia. Julie Audrey Ward Carnegie referenced resolution 250125 (a separate item condemning the former president) in her remarks and submitted supporting materials for the record.
The resolution as read into the record has two central asks: release the detained individual named in the title and for Philadelphia’s congressional delegation to champion welcoming immigration measures in Pennsylvania. The transcript records adoption of the resolution; it does not show implementation steps or city enforcement mechanisms tied to the request to federal authorities.
Ending: The council vote places the matter on the public record and directs the city’s elected body to call publicly for the detainee’s release and for federal legislative action; enforcement of immigration law remains a federal responsibility.
