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Students and residents press Montclair council to adopt Montclair Trust Act as enforceable ordinance
Summary
Dozens of students and residents urged Montclair leaders to convert a previously passed resolution into an enforceable Montclair Trust Act ordinance that limits local cooperation with ICE and strengthens immigrant protections, while also urging immediate sanctuary-style action.
A sustained wave of student and community testimony at the March 17 Montclair Township Council meeting urged the council to adopt the Montclair Trust Act as an ordinance rather than a nonbinding resolution, saying an enforceable law would better protect immigrants from immigration enforcement actions.
Students from Montclair High School and community activists called on the council to take the strongest possible local action after recent ICE activity in the region. Victoria Luna, a Montclair High sophomore and one of the student organizers of a recent walkout, asked the council bluntly: “If you’re not passing this ordinance, what is your plan?” She said the walkout and ongoing organizing showed a broad youth demand for legal protections rather than symbolic statements.
Student organizer Nola Kim said the walkout was not about skipping class but about civic participation: “We gave our time, missed tests, classes, and got marked absent because we believe our voice matters,” she said.
Multiple residents, faith leaders and civil-rights advocates backed the students and urged stronger, enforceable restrictions on municipal cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. Speakers suggested several specific local actions within municipal authority, including requiring judicial warrants for enforcement on municipal property, refusing contracts with federal immigration agencies, and ensuring the Montclair Police Department does not collaborate with ICE.
Maria Badurigo read a nine-year-old child’s letter from detention to emphasize the human cost of immigration detention and to press the council to act where it could: “You can ensure that Montclair Police Department does not collaborate with ICE,” she told the council.
Council members acknowledged the limits of local power—several speakers and staff noted that municipalities cannot stop federal enforcement—but many residents urged the council to use every available local tool to protect residents and to draft an ordinance with enforceable provisions rather than a one-time resolution.
What’s next: Council members did not adopt an ordinance during this meeting. The public urged the council to bring ordinance language forward quickly; student organizers said they would continue to press for an ordinance and asked council members to explain what concrete policies they intend to use to protect immigrant neighbors.
