Mayor Lurie Signs Executive Directive to Prepare for Potential Federal Deployment, Support San Francisco's Immigrant Communities

SAN FRANCISCO – Mayor Daniel Lurie today signed an executive directive to continue the coordinated work to enhance public safety in San Francisco by coordinating public safety and communication procedures, supporting San Francisco’s immigrant communities, and maintaining trust between residents and government.

The executive directive lays out clear, decisive actions to support immigrant communities and ensure the city remains prepared for possible federal action. It will ensure safety, transparency, and adherence to state and local law.

Below are Mayor Lurie’s full remarks as prepared for delivery:

My fellow San Franciscans. Since the day I took office, my top priority has been keeping you safe. For months, we have been anticipating the possibility of some kind of federal deployment in our city.

Our communities have already endured the painful impact of aggressive immigration enforcement. At the same time, we continue to see escalated operations across the country, with military personnel on the ground in cities like Chicago and Portland.

For the last ten months, we have been taking steps to prepare for this kind of escalation here in San Francisco. 

And I want to be very clear: We are prepared.

Our public safety agencies are trained and coordinated. Our critical infrastructure departments—including our hospitals, schools, and transportation systems—are ready. And our City Attorney is equipped to take the necessary legal action.

We have been in regular communication with community leaders to stay informed, respond to needs as they arise, and offer appropriate resources.

It is my sincere hope that we never have to put any of our planning into action.

But we must be ready.

Just a few minutes ago, I signed an executive directive that will build on these preparations, strengthen the city’s support for our immigrant communities, and ensure our departments are coordinated ahead of any federal deployment.

Through this directive, we will make sure that our communities get the resources and the accurate information they need from local government and our partners like the Rapid Response Network. 

We are activating the Department of Emergency Management to coordinate across departments, with the Office of Civic Engagement and Immigrant Affairs serving as a critical resource in all of that work.

The directive ensures that our local law enforcement protects San Franciscans’ right to protest peacefully and that all city employees know their rights. And as our policy has always been, we will ensure that our local government does not support federal civil immigration enforcement operations.

As I have said and will continue to say, sending the military to San Francisco will NOT help our city or our country. 

From our police chief and our sheriff, to our district attorney and our Board of Supervisors, our city leaders have been united in making public safety our number one priority.

And we’ve made real progress: Our city is seeing a net increase in police officers and sheriff’s deputies for the first time in a decade. Violent crime has dropped to 70-year lows. And tent encampments are at record lows.

In fact, some of that progress has come because we’ve been working in partnership with state and federal law enforcement to tackle fentanyl.

Thanks to that work, our city is on the rise. Visitors are coming back. Buildings are getting leased and purchased. Workers are coming back to the office.

Immigrants are the small business owners, essential workers, community leaders, and neighbors who make San Francisco a place that we are proud to call home. They fuel our economy—contributing nearly $275 billion in output and $23 billion in annual tax revenue across California.

There’s no question we have more work to do, especially when it comes to fentanyl. Governor Newsom and the California Highway Patrol have been great, and we would welcome the opportunity to strengthen our partnerships with the FBI, DEA, ATF, and US Attorney to get drugs and drug dealers off our streets. That’s the work we need to keep doing.

A federal deployment of the National Guard can’t do that.

They cannot arrest drug dealers or shut down open-air drug markets.

Uncoordinated federal action undermines our work. Having the military posted in front of our schools, restaurants, and office buildings will hinder our progress and let chaos get in the way of our recovery.

It cuts off families from income, keeps children from the food and social services they desperately need, and stops people from reporting crime and taking their loved ones to the hospital. This doesn’t make our city safer—it terrorizes our communities. 

For the first time in years, San Franciscans believe our city is moving in the right direction. And when San Francisco is strong—when we continue to lead the country and the world in technology and AI—our country is strong.

We don’t know exactly what the federal government is planning in San Francisco and across the Bay Area. But we do know this federal administration has a playbook.

In cities across the country, masked immigration officials are deployed to use aggressive enforcement tactics that instill fear, so people don’t feel safe going about their daily lives.

These tactics are designed to incite backlash, chaos, and violence, which are then used as an excuse to deploy military personnel. They are intentionally creating a dangerous situation in the name of public safety.

And while we cannot control the federal government, here in San Francisco, we define who we are. We stick to our values. We support our communities the way we always have—by doing these three things: 

First: We are going to protect every San Franciscan in any way possible. That means keeping local law enforcement focused on local public safety. We have longstanding sanctuary policies in our city that prohibit local law enforcement from assisting federal immigration enforcement. Those policies help build trust between police and communities, and they help people feel comfortable reporting crimes.

If you see SFPD on the street, they are there to keep you safe. We can’t prevent federal officials from enforcing immigration laws, but we’re going to keep our local law enforcement focused on ensuring your safety.

Second: We are going to make our voices heard—peacefully. We have already seen this federal administration deploy cruel, un-American tactics to target immigrant communities in our city. If we see these kinds of tactics used again or escalated, we will protest, and we will do it peacefully.

You have my commitment that the San Francisco Police Department and all of our local law enforcement will protect your First Amendment rights and ensure you can make your voices heard. 

I also want to be crystal clear that violent behavior towards officers and others, or destructive behavior towards local businesses, will absolutely not be tolerated.

San Francisco has a rich history of peaceful protest. Just last weekend, 50,000 people marched on Market Street without a single arrest. Our message is clearest when our voices are loud and peaceful. We can do this.

Finally: We are going to support each other. There are so many things we can do: If your neighbor needs groceries, pick up some food for them. Help a family get their kids safely to and from school. If the small business on your block is struggling, stop by and give them a boost.

Let me say it one more time: If federal officials come to incite chaos on the streets of San Francisco, the way to support our communities—and keep everyone in our city safe—is to make our voices heard peacefully.

Violence and destruction will only open the door to a more aggressive response. And that puts our communities at greater risk.

This federal administration wants to divide us, but we know San Francisco is strongest when we come together to stand up for each other and our values. That’s what makes this the greatest city in the world.

San Francisco will never stand by as our neighbors are targeted, and neither will I.

I’ve got your back. Let’s have each other’s back and keep our city safe. We got this. 

Thank you.