Editor,

The City of Langley needs to answer, with the force of law, the question of how the city will respond to a request or unlawful order from the federal government that puts any any law abiding members of our community at risk, including taking them into custody and gathering or reporting information on their immigration status. Feel-good resolutions and proclamations that dodge the real question — What will we do? — aren’t worth much when the chips are down. These questions need to be thoughtfully addressed now, before they must be acted upon. And if the answer is that the city would indeed comply with any such request from the federal government, let’s get that out in the open now. Let’s put the vulnerable people in our community on notice so they can make informed decisions about what they can expect and whether this is a safe place for them to live. Not knowing is truly terrifying a segment of our community.

Having a clear city ordinance on the books would also take the burden of having to make these morally and ethically charged decisions off the shoulders of the police chief and other city officials. If these questions should ever arise, their jobs become easier if they can rely on clear direction in the Langley city code in performing their duties.

The dangerous times in which we find ourselves compel me to speak up and participate in the political process as much as I am able. I think we are all afraid, perhaps of different things.

It is my sincere hope that we will not allow this divisive political climate to tear apart our wonderful and inclusive community, which I cherish.

“In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” — Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

SUE VAN ETTEN

Langley