The legislation, (No. 777-87), was introduced by Councilman Dale Miller, who is currently a Cuyahoga County councilman, and was passed on May 18 of that year. It was then vetoed on May 27 by then-Mayor George Voinovich.
In a letter he wrote to Robert Brown, then the district director of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (and CC’d to the United States Attorney General at the time, Edwin Meese), Voinovich said he worried that the resolution would create the “false impression” that illegal immigrants would be immune to Federal prosecution.
But this was during the tumultuous conflicts in Central America, and thousands of refugees were fleeing from the countries of Guatemala and El Salvador, in particular. City Council, led by Council President George Forbes, stood its ground. They overrode Voinovich’s veto in a decisive 18 to 1 vote on June 8. Though the legislation was reduced from an ordinance to a resolution, it is still by all accounts in effect.
“Technically, we already are a Sanctuary City,” said Councilman Zack Reed. He told Scene he intended to speak on the matter at Monday evening’s City Council meeting. He said he was animated by what he regarded as the brazen actions of President Donald Trump and the rhetoric from Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel.
Mandel will challenge Senator Sherrod Brown in the 2018 US Senate race. On Monday, he threw his weight behind a bill that would ban “sanctuary cities” and would hold local elected officials criminally liable for crimes committed by undocumented immigrants.
Reed said he was seeking information from the city’s law department about the routes Cleveland might take to assume Sanctuary City status when he learned of the 1987 legislation.
Though this took place nearly 30 years ago, several current council members were serving at that time: Jeff Johnson, Kenneth Johnson and Mike Polensek all held council seats. Polensek, notably, was the lone nay vote in last week’s symbolic resolution denouncing Trump’s travel ban and naming Cleveland a “Welcoming City.” Back in 1987, he walked out before the official vote to overturn Voinovich’s veto. He and former councilman Jay Westbrook were the only councilpeople whose votes weren’t tallied. (There were 21 councilpeople at the time.)
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CORRECTION 2/10/17: Councilman Mike Polensek said he did not “walk out” before the Voinovich veto vote on June 8, 1987. He can’t recall the exact reason why his vote wasn’t tallied, but he said there would have been a reason for his absence — possibly even the death of a grandparent. Polensek said he takes his council attendance very seriously and would never have “run from” this particular issue. He confirmed he was aligned with George Voinovich at the time, who was concerned about undocumented immigrants, and objected to the language of the resolution. But he contended, then as now, that the city has more important issues to be worrying about.
“I’m a councilman,” he told Scene, “not a congressman. I’m not here to score points. But I did not ‘walk out’ of that meeting.”
The veto vote below merely puts Polensek’s name under “not answering roll call.”
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Other council people’s names should be familiar: Ed Rybka, who is currently the City of Cleveland’s Economic Development Chief; Dan Brady, the President of Cuyahoga County Council; Gus Frangos of the County Land Bank; Jim Rokakis of the Western Reserve Land Conservancy’s Thriving Communities Institute; the late great Fannie Lewis; the beloved housing court judge Ray Pianka, also lately deceased.
They all had a hand, back in the ’80s, in making sure that refugees facing “tremendous danger and hardship,” those fleeing wars that had been illegally financed and coordinated by the United States government, could find refuge in Cleveland, Ohio.
But everyone seems to have forgotten.
This article appears in Feb 1-7, 2017.
It was as politicized then — as it is now, since there is money to be made from a boogeyman……those refugees were tagged as being Communists, which has been replaced with Radical Muslims. Ethnic profiling and racial slurs are an ongoing gimmick for those who worship at the alter of the “Politics of Rage”.
My grandfather Albert Joseph Bialek came to the United States from Poland {Galicia} in 1910. Per the Ellis Island website he boarded the ship Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse in Bremen, Germany {formerly Prussia}. He had just completed his service in the Austrian Army. Poland at that time was divided into three spheres of influence by Austria, Prussia and Russia. Upon being
discharged he returned to his fathers farm. Officers from the Austrian Army made an attempt to reenlist him but tradition dictated that he could remain at home so long as he was sorely needed on the farm. Immediately after the officers departed Alberts father gave him his brothers travel documents and instructed him to immigrate to the United States. His father
knew that war was coming and he didnt want to lose his son to it. It took me longer to locate my grandfather on the passenger list because I had forgotten he was traveling under the name Jan and not Albert. Upon arriving at Ellis Island Albert was directed to meet with an Inspector who proceeded to ask him a series of questions. Looking at Alberts papers the Inspector pronounced his last name {phonetically} as BIE-AA-LE-K to which Albert earnestly objected by stating his last name as BEE-AA-W-E-K. In Polish the L is pronounced as a W. After several go rounds with Albert over the correct pronunciation of his last name the frustrated Inspector
finally demanded that the name be pronounced BIE-AA-LE-K {or youre getting back on that boat that brought you here} to which Albert fully complied with the new pronunciation of his last name. Given the fact that Albert entered the United States under the name Jan Bialek and later burned his immigration papers it is evident he was by definition a illegal immigrant. He went on to become a very hard-working brick mason and law-abiding citizen raising 12 children with the help of his Polish wife Mary {nee Mazan} and the rest {as they say} is history.
Just as Cleveland {Ohio} is a city of neighborhoods so is the United States a country of immigrants. In fact all the major cities of America {at one time} served as incubators for immigrants to not only become accustomed to the ways of this country but also to intermingle with each other {often prohibited in their native homeland}. It’s a shame that the inner cities were handed over
to the absentee landlords following World War ll. Just imagine how much stronger and united our country might have been had this unofficial tradition continued. Gentrification is not the answer. Preventing immigration is notthe solution. Intense vetting is acceptable during these challenging times but to unfairly deny one person access to the United States makes us all orphans again. As a popular song goes: “let me in immigration man.”
So not surprising that the lone vote to uphold Voinovich’s veto was Joe Cannon.