ROANOKE, Va. – The City of Roanoke was named a Welcoming City by Welcoming America, a third-party non-profit organization, last February. The status shows how the city has demonstrated policies, practices and services are inclusive to everyone, especially those who come from other countries.
“A welcoming city or a certified welcoming city focuses on building trust and relationships between our local law enforcement and community members,” Katie Hedrick, the City of Roanoke’s Inclusive Services Manager, said.
However, that status may clash with recent immigration changes from the new Trump administration.
Recently, President Donald Trump and the Justice Department have ordered federal prosecutors to investigate state or local officials who they believe are interfering with the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration.
These new policies would have much more of an effect on cities that are designated sanctuary cities.
“For the most part, sanctuary cities are called that because they limit their interactions with federal law enforcement or federal immigration enforcement,” Hedrick said.
New immigration policies from the Trump administration, however, could bring new challenges to immigrants living here in Roanoke. According to the city, data from 2017 showed that just over 11,800 immigrants are living in Roanoke.
For now, however, these new policies shouldn’t affect Roanoke’s status as a welcoming city or the people who are welcomed here.
“Our welcoming designation really has nothing to do with immigration enforcement or hindering immigration, it only has to do with the policies and services that we have in place for people,” Hedrick said. “So the best of my knowledge, it really shouldn’t impact what we do or the way that we do it.”