A Honduran woman spoke at a Towson rally to support Baltimore County legislation that would set aside resources and establish protections for immigrants.

The mother of two, who used the pseudonym Lucia to protect herself and her family from immigration authorities, hopes to teach in the U.S. one day, and believes in the power of education for personal and community growth.

“The bills are a beacon of hope [luz de esperanza] for many of us immigrants," Lucia said in Spanish.

Several dozen advocates and community members in support chanted behind her: “¡Sí se puede! Si se puede!" or, in English: “Yes we can!”

Last month, Councilman Izzy Patoka introduced two bills, collectively known as the Trust Act, to limit the county’s ability to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The Pikesville Democrat reiterated during Tuesday’s rally, ahead of the county’s meeting to discuss those bills, that the legislation was partly inspired because his parents were Jewish immigrants who fled the Holocaust.

“Civility is highly underrated. And over the past year, the idea of civility has been diminished,” he said. “And so we are here gathered today ... to add some civility because this is about civility, it’s about dignity, but it’s also about action.”

The rally, hosted by the nonprofit advocacy organization CASA, came before Tuesday evening’s Baltimore County Council six-hour meeting where the bills were discussed.

Thirty-two people testified on the Trust Act. The majority, 26 in total, advocated to pass the pair of bills; eight argued against them.

The bills require votes from four of the seven councilmen in order to become law. Republicans David Marks and Todd Crandell left the work session after speakers began testifying for the immigration protections.

Marks later reappeared online.

Patoka, along with fellow Democrats Julian Jones and Mike Ertel, remained in the council’s chambers the entire session. Catonsville Democrat Pat Young briefly left before the immigration discussion began but returned halfway through.

Republican Wade Kach attended the entire work session virtually.

What would these bills do?

During the rally, Patoka — who is running for county executive — said Renee Nicole Good’s death at the hands of an ICE officer in Minnesota galvanized him.

“We can’t just watch [someone] be executed in a public street,” he said. “And that has become normalized and it becomes normalized when you have so-called law enforcement with masks, heavy weapons, acting so aggressively.”

One bill would prohibit any county employee, department or agency from discriminating against anyone who wasn’t born in the United States based on citizenship, nationality or immigration status, according to a draft.

There are, however, exceptions, including: previously passed federal and state laws, county job applications, voter registration rolls and U.S. passport applications.

Additionally, the bill does not prevent Baltimore County Police from assisting in criminal investigations or participating in joint law enforcement task forces, so long as the purpose is not to enforce civil immigration laws.

This bill also does not reverse the county’s decision to memorialize a longstanding agreement with ICE to hold inmates in the county’s detention center for up to 48 hours past their release dates if ICE has an immigration detainer against them.

But if the bill passes, Patoka said, the agreement’s policy requiring county officials to hold inmates with nonjudicial detainers, signed by ICE administrative officers, for up to four hours would be illegal.

The second bill would codify the Office of Immigrant Affairs, currently housed under the county executive’s office.

The county previously allocated $235,000 in its budget this year to pay three employees who focus on immigrants.

Immigrant impact in county

Jones offered his support to Patoka’s bills and added his name as a cosponsor.

“I want to be very clear that I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure our government is not participating in destroying our communities,” the Woodstock Democrat said.

Jones, who is also running for county executive, acknowledged that he does not support nor condone criminals who are in the country illegally. But the councilman added that the vast majority of immigrants living in Baltimore County are hardworking individuals looking for opportunities to improve their lives.

The latest data from the county’s Office of Community Engagement shows there were at least 103,700 immigrants, 12.5% of the population, in the county as of 2019.

According to the report, which was conducted with help from the American Immigration Council, Baltimore County immigrants paid over $1 billion in taxes, including about $400 million in state and local taxes, and drove the county’s population growth from 2014 to 2019.

Bilal Askaryar, a first-generation immigrant from Afghanistan and U.S. citizen, testified in support of both bills and asked the council members to think beyond immigrants’ economic contributions to the county and consider the bills’ human impact.

“I’m here because our federal government has turned ICE into the largest law enforcement agency in the United States ... and the Supreme Court has given them free reign to racially profile people,” he said. “I’m here because I’m tired of carrying a copy of my passport on me when I go for a walk or drive across the state to visit my nieces.”

While most who spoke urged the council to support the legislation, several residents were vehemently opposed, including Tim Fazenbaker.

Fazenbaker, who is running to replace Crandell as Dundalk councilman, claimed Patoka’s bills would allow criminals residing in the country illegally to rape and murder more Maryland women, referencing the deaths of Rachel Morin, Da’Cara Thompson and Kayla Hamilton.

“This bill will tie the hands of law enforcement and make it harder to prevent tragedies,” he said. “Out of love for our citizens we must reject it. But the dangers aren’t just physical, they’re financial, too. If you pass this, any type of sanctuary bill, you will lose up to $500 million in federal funding.”

Patoka asked Ertel, the council’s chair, to dismiss Fazenbaker after he kept talking past his three-minute allowance while demanding Patoka say the names of the slain women.

“You’re a traitor to your people, Izzy,” Fazenbaker told the councilman.

Majority community support, but will it pass?

Supporters for both bills ranged in age and occupation — with testimony from Maryland’s Office of the Public Defender’s immigration director to remarks from a Woodlawn High School junior.

That teenager, Wilmer Menjivar, said he’s an immigrant who dreams of becoming a pilot.

“I want a system that respects our right as students and human beings and to fight for an environment where every young immigrant can study without fear,” he said.

While Patoka and Jones committed to both bills’ passage, it is unclear how the other councilmen will vote on the bills.

County Executive Kathy Klausmeier did not respond to a question about whether she would support them.

Her spokesperson, Dakarai Turner, said neither piece of legislation would fundamentally change the county’s policies or operations.

“Baltimore County does not enforce immigration laws or ask about immigration or citizenship status unless required by state or federal law,” he wrote in a statement.

The council will hold a final reading and vote for both bills on Feb. 2.