Socorro Diaz is one of seven community members who are on fasting in front of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors’ building for a Sanctuary ordinance. Spurred by Donald Trump’s executive orders that have swept up many immigrants — even some in the US legally — and sent them to detention centers, Diaz said, “I prefer to die on the hunger strike, than in a detention center.”

Originally from Oaxaca, Mexico, she has lived in Sonoma Cunty for 24 years, where she has a husband, three children, sisters and brothers and many friends.

“I brought my family here for a better life,” she said, sitting on a collapsible chair, under a canopy to shade her from the summer heat.

Along with the other hunger strikers, five from the Latinx community and two non-Latinos from the religious community, Diaz plans to remain on the hunger strike until the supervisors pass a Sanctuary ordinance.

The strike is organized by the Sonoma county Sanctuary Coalition, a group of religious and activist organizations.

During an interview on the second day of the hunger strike, Diaz elaborated on her request to the supervisors.

“For me it is not acceptable what is going on with the immigrant community,” she said. “I am feeling a lot of emotions,” she continued. I am thinking of what will be going on in the next couple of years. I hope to get Sanctuary to protect our community, our workers, our women and kids. They (the supervisors) are not doing enough. They could do more. They have to stand with the people.” 

But county supervisors say they are doi9ng plenty.

“The board of supervisors has done a lot of things to protect immigrants,” said Third District Supervisor Chris Coursey. It has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars for immigrant defense. We appointed a new district attorney just to defend immigrants.

“Sanctuary is not a solution to anything. It does not protect anyone. It doesn’t change any of our policies or actions. It is a false promise. We asked the sheriff if it would change anything they’ve been doing. He said nothing it does helps anyone. But I respect people’s right to speak freely. But I respect hunger strikes.”

“I wish they weren’t so paternalistic,” said Renee Saucedo, a local attorney and human rights activist, and founder of Almas Libres (Free Spirits), one of the organizations supporting the hunger strike. “They are out of touch with what people are living though every day of their lives. 

“The federal government is pumping billions of dollars into rounding up immigrants. We can’t trust that the county wouldn’t be pressured to join in. We need an enforceable law. Sonoma County is already on Homeland Security’s hit list, according to its website. There is no way to predict what will happen. People are afraid to leave their homes, to go to work, to access services,” Saucedo elaborated, “It’s (Sanctuary) not a solution to everything, but it’s a good start.”

Although she not an immigrant, having been born in the U.S., Saucedo is one of the hunger strikers. Rev. Lindsey Bell-Kerr, lead pastor at the United Methodist Church in Santa Rosa, is another one of the non-immigrant hunger strikers, along with Dan Vroman, a member of the Catholic organization, Emmaus.

Bell-Kerr said several religious organizations are participating, primarily as support people, including Cotati synagogue Ner Shalom, Dharma Heart Zen in Sebastopol and the Unitarian Universalist Community (UCC) in Santa Rosa. There is always a faith leader onsite and, other members of the faith community are functioning as liaisons to the board of supervisors and the sheriff’s office. In order to maintain the strikers’ health during their ordeal there is a medical team headed up by Dr. Jenny Fish, and the strikers are drinking fluids with electrolytes.

But the unpredictable sweeps of immigrants by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is not the only thing that keeps some immigrants hiding in their homes. They are also concerned that the Sonoma County Sheriff’s office provides release dates for incarcerated immigrants to ICE, which allows the enforcement agency to pick up immigrants as they leave the jail or the courtrooms.

But Sonoma County Sheriff Eddie Engram says his department is only cooperating with ICE when it is required by law. It is not initiating offering information to ICE. At a Truth Act forum earlier this year Sheriff Eddie Engram said the release dates are public information and his department does not hold anyone on immigration detainer, only on warrants issued by judges. Last year, according to engram, ICE called the sheriff’s department with 484 requests and the department only responded to 64 of them.

In a telephone interview Fifth District Supervisor Linda Hopkins said, “We can’t control the policies of the sheriff’s department.”

Although the supervisors provide the sheriff’s department with a budget, the sheriff has complete control over how to spend it.

Still, the hunger strikers and their allies believe the immigrant community would feel more supported by the county if there were a Sanctuary ordinance in place.

Bell-Kerr said,“ Even if it’s only symbolic, why not give the community what it wants.”