WHEREAS, On January 11, 2018, several members of Congress and President Trump met to talk about a bipartisan immigration deal which included the extension of protection to immigrants from Haiti, El Salvador, and other countries in Africa that recently lost their Temporary Protected Status designation; and
WHEREAS, During the meeting, President Trump reportedly expressed that the United States’ immigration policy should consider more applicants from nations such as Norway, and fewer from “shithole” countries; and
WHEREAS, The validity of these remarks was confirmed by three senators present during the meeting: Senator Dick Durbin, Senator Lindsay Graham
,
and Senator Jeff Flake. While two senators, Senator Tom Cotton and Senator David Perdue issued a statement saying that they “do not recall the President saying those comments specifically”; and
WHEREAS, The remarks have been strongly condemned by the international community. The United Nations described the President’s comments as “racist”; the African Union expressed that it “flies in the face of all accepted behavior and practice”; the Haitain government condemned the remarks as “abhorrent and obnoxious”; and the government of El Salvador sent a formal letter of protest; and
WHEREAS, The neo-Nazi website, the Daily Stormer, commended the President’s remarks stating that they were “encouraging and refreshing, as it indicates Trump is more or less on the same page with us with regards to race and immigration”; and
WHEREAS, The Congressional Black Caucus along with the support of 130 House Democrats sponsored a resolution condemning and calling for the censuring of the President; and
WHEREAS, The City Council of Philadelphia fully supports the efforts of the Congressional Black Caucus to condemn and censure President Trump’s and stand firmly with the people of Africa, Haiti, and El Salvador;
now
,
therefore, be it
Resolved, that the City
Council of Philadelphia, Expresses support for the resolution introduced by the United States Congressional Black Caucus condemning and calling for the censure of President Trump because of remarks he made about certain African countries, Haiti, and El Salvador.
FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Chief Clerk is directed to forward a certified copy of this Resolution to the to the United States House of Representatives as evidence of the support of this legislative body.
End
