Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Public forum at Spokane City Council centers on ICE, homelessness and surveillance concerns
Summary
Dozens of public speakers at the Jan. 26 Spokane City Council meeting urged the city to act on immigration enforcement practices, expand inclement‑weather shelter beds, oppose criminalizing homelessness, and review police surveillance practices; speakers included people with lived experience, neighborhood advocates and health professionals.
Open forum at the Spokane City Council meeting on Jan. 26 drew extended testimony on immigration enforcement, homelessness and police surveillance.
Dr. Alyssa Hensley, identifying herself as a District 1 voter, urged the council to "implement a categorical ban on the use of city owned and city controlled property as staging areas, processing locations, or operational basis for immigration enforcement," citing local concern about federal immigration operations and referencing a Jan. 26 press invitation from the council president. She asked the council to use "the levers of power available to you to protect us." (Dr. Alyssa Hensley)
Multiple speakers alleged problematic interactions between local…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
