San Juan mayor to meet with HSI director amid concerns over ICE operations in local communities
By THE STAR STAFF
San Juan Mayor Miguel Romero Lugo said he will meet this week with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Rebecca González Ramos to discuss recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in Puerto Rico, as concerns mount over allegations of civil rights violations during enforcement activities in immigrant communities.
Speaking in a radio interview Monday, Romero said the meeting is intended to provide municipal officials with a clearer understanding of how the federal operations are being conducted and to ensure that residents’ rights are protected. He did not specify what the city will do to protect the rights of residents.
“We agreed to meet this week, and an initial meeting has been scheduled for tomorrow morning at City Hall,” Romero said. “My objective is for everything to be done in accordance with the law and to ensure that civil rights are not being violated indiscriminately in communities simply because of the perception that foreign nationals reside there, when many residents are U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, or people who are working and contributing to society.”
The mayor’s comments come after several weeks of reports describing federal immigration enforcement actions in municipalities including San Juan and Canóvanas. Community groups and advocates have criticized some of the operations, characterizing them as aggressive and raising concerns about the treatment of residents and bystanders.
Last week, Romero publicly questioned the manner in which federal agents conducted enforcement actions in neighborhoods such as Santurce, Barrio Obrero and Río Piedras. He also reiterated that municipal police officers and city officials would not participate in immigration raids.
The mayor said he has already communicated his concerns directly to federal authorities, calling for an administrative review of incidents reportedly captured on video and circulated through local media. Among the issues he cited were allegations that ICE agents threatened members of the public who were recording enforcement activities, including reports that individuals were warned they could be sprayed with pepper spray if they continued filming.
Romero emphasized that residents have the right to document police activity, provided they are not interfering with law enforcement operations.
He also questioned whether some of the recent interventions were being conducted with adequate regard for the demographics of the affected neighborhoods.
“Communities such as Río Piedras and Barrio Obrero are home to many American citizens of foreign origin and lawful permanent residents,” Romero said. “We did not know whether authorities were executing specific arrest warrants or carrying out broader operations.”
The mayor specifically referenced concerns raised after members of the feminist advocacy group Colectiva Feminista en Construcción recorded ICE agents operating near Colegio San Antonio in Río Piedras.
At the same time, Romero rejected calls from the American Civil Liberties Union of Puerto Rico to designate San Juan as a sanctuary city.
While stressing that the municipality provides support and services to immigrant residents, Romero argued that formally adopting sanctuary-city status could provoke a stronger federal enforcement response.
“We already provide extensive support to the immigrant community,” he said. “Declaring ourselves a sanctuary city is a political statement that carries consequences. What we have seen in other jurisdictions is that such declarations can trigger reprisals and increased federal enforcement activity.”
Instead, the mayor said San Juan will continue focusing on policies designed to protect residents regardless of immigration status. Those measures include maintaining an office dedicated to immigrant services, providing access to public health services, and limiting the collection of information that could reveal a resident’s immigration status when seeking municipal services.
Romero argued that these practical protections offer more meaningful support than a symbolic designation, adding that his administration’s priority is safeguarding vulnerable residents while avoiding actions that could place them at greater risk.
The upcoming meeting with González is expected to address the scope and procedures of the recent ICE operations and the concerns that have emerged from community members, advocacy organizations and municipal officials regarding their impact on immigrant neighborhoods across the capital city.
