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The CNY Solidarity Coalition met Sunday to discuss President Donald Trump’s restrictive immigration and voting policy plans. Coalition members also encouraged community members to engage with and challenge local politicians to fight against unjust policies.

The organization was originally founded to combat Trump’s agenda in his first term in the White House, Peter McCarthy, a member of the coalition’s coordinating committee, said. Eight years later, he said that goal remains unchanged.

“Our function is to bring people together to oppose the policies that the Trump administration has put in place,” McCarthy said. “That’s what we started with eight years ago — and to do that in a number of different ways, such as getting people to interact with their legislators. ”

Founded in 2017, the grassroots organization works for economic, social, racial and environmental justice in central New York. The volunteer coalition aims to strengthen democracy and protect the environment via civic engagement such as protests, rallies and supporting other progressive organizations in the region that align with the group’s message.

At Sunday’s meeting, a representative from New York’s Immigration Coalition stressed the importance of protecting immigrant communities from the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. The representative encouraged the audience to educate themselves on ICE procedures and offered their organization’s website, which provides tips to avoiding immigration scams, protecting families when interacting with ICE and immigrants’ rights in cases of arrest.

On Jan. 20, Trump signed an executive order calling for the arrest of all illegal immigrants with criminal records and the removal of former President Joe Biden’s policy that prevented ICE from making arrests near “sensitive” locations such as schools, places of worship and hospitals.

Elaine Denton, who has been with the coalition since 2016, said the organization is very concerned by the president’s immigration policies and said Trump’s anti-immigration efforts in 2016 were part of the inspiration for the coalition’s founding.

“Syracuse is a sanctuary city, and we are really proud of our past, right? So we want to hold on to that and be there and provide support wherever we can,” Denton said. “We do that by working with allied organizations and learning as much as we can from the people who are impacted.”

Attendees also heard from Christine Wood, co-director of the Declaration for American Democracy Coalition, who has attended the coalition’s meetings since 2016. Wood denounced the “terrible” SAVE Act, a voting bill supported by Trump’s administration that could disenfranchise millions of people with names different than the ones on their birth certificates, Wood said.

She encouraged attendees to call on local politicians including Rep. John Mannion and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to repeal the bill, which will be voted on in the next few weeks.

“CNY Solidarity can serve as a place where people can come and learn what they can do to be involved in the community and help have a voice in what’s happening in Washington,” Wood said. “In this moment, when we have this influx of people and energy looking for a way to get involved, this is serving as an essential coordinating space.”

After discussing national policies, one of the coalition’s main committees, the State Legislative Action Team, discussed tactics for convincing local legislators to halt plans for an aquarium in Onondaga County. Initially thought to cost $85 million, the project will likely require over $100 million for completion.

McCarthy said the aquarium is just one of the local issues the coalition has contacted local politicians about to encourage decisions that benefit the community. Other concerns include the lead contamination in Syracuse and Micron Technology’s incoming semiconductor manufacturing plant in Clay.

“We try to influence legislators and inform the public about those issues,” McCarthy said. “Through our committees, we try to work on a lot of issues at the state and local level. We’ve been doing that for several years.”

Wood said she continues attending meetings because of the group’s ability to address a wide range of issues, especially by partnering with groups like the Syracuse Peace Council and Syracuse Cultural Workers.

She said that, while the coalition’s work has always been important, she feels its impact could be stronger with its increased participation.

“In this moment, community is really important,” Wood said. “One thing I love about this space is that it’s really welcoming and inclusive. If someone is interested in getting more involved, you don’t need a PhD in policy. This is open to anyone.”

Published on February 10, 2025 at 12:57 am

Contact Henry: hdaley@syr.edu