Vol. 72, Issue 1
J a n u a r y 2 7 - Fe b r u a r y 3 , 2 0 2 6
Est. 1981
THE PAISANO
Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio Community
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fear, frustration: rage against ice in sa Standing up from her seat, Cheryl Gonzales shouts across the municipal building during Bexar County Commissioner Grant Moody’s allotted time to speak to the council.
By Marisela Cruz News Editor
S
an Antonio’s city council members took to the municipal building last Thursday to address the San Antonio Police Department’s legal obligations to cooperate with federal agencies such as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The meeting drew hundreds of protesters outside the municipal building with signs illustrating messages warding off ICE and demanding that city officials be transparent. A long line of citizens waiting to watch the meeting or speak in front of the city council formed outside the building. Approximately 350 people were able to occupy the municipal building, with 179 people signing up to speak during the public comment session. The meeting began a little after 1 p.m. with a formal presentation titled “San Antonio Police Department Cooperation with Federal Agencies.” This was presented by Deputy City Manager Maria Villagomez, City Attorney Andy Segovia and Chief of Police William McManus. Villagomez first demonstrated the legal obligations that the city must obey, including Senate Bill 4, which San Antonio was sued for violating in November of 2018 by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Senate Bill 4 2017, the Anti-Sanctuary Cities Bill, requires the city and SAPD to cooperate with federal agencies in the enforcement of federal immigration laws. McManus then took the stand to reassure SAPD’s duties. “I want to be very clear that SAPD does not enforce immigration laws. We simply do not do that because it is illegal for us to enforce immigration laws. Our role is public safety alone, not immigration enforcement,” McManus stated. It was emphasized by McManus that SAPD is legally obligated to comply with ICE, which was addressed with the Nov. 16, 2025, San Pedro incident. The Federal Bureau of Investigation-led operation had a narcotics search warrant, while the SAPD’s involvement included scene security and investigative units. This particular incident remains ongoing. When the SAPD complies with federal task high-intensity drug trafficking areas, they are awarded a grant of up to $2 million. Under SB4, SAPD is required to cooperate with the Department of Homeland Security in immigration-related incidents and events occurring within the SAPD’s jurisdiction. Villagomez took over the stand again to further go over the statistics of FY25 dispatched calls received by the police department. SAPD received 2.1 million 911 calls in 2025, with 66 to reference immigration. Approximately 1.8 million calls were dispatched by SAPD, and 258 of those were reported to include the word “immigration.” SAPD is required by law to comply with
immigration detainers, according to what was presented by Villagomez. In 2025, the SAPD arrested 51,064 individuals, and of those arrested, ICE issued 111 to be detained. After Villagomez concluded her overview, McManus approached the stand to present another statement for SAPD. “We will continue to protect San Antonio with compassion, integrity, fairness and respect,” McManus said. “And again, to our citizens out there, we are sensitive to your concerns, and we are very aware of the fear out there, and we certainly take that into account when we are dealing with our community.” Throughout the presentation, demonstrators outside the municipal building banged on drums and those inside stomped their feet. Tension surrounding the meeting was addressed during the city council members’ allotted time to ask questions regarding the presentation. District 6 Council Member Ric Galvan directed a question to McManus, but because of the disruptive noise inside and outside of the building, McManus was unable to answer. The first recess was called when Bexar County Commissioner Grant Moody took to the stand after the council members as the first person to speak during the public comment session. At 2:18 p.m., Jones called the recess when an uproar of demonstrators started to boo and yell in distress, saying, “This is the public’s time to speak.” Before Moody spoke again to finish his allotted time after the recess, Jones addressed the attendees within the building. “Before you start your comments again, let me just reiterate to our neighbors. We are here to listen. We also want to make sure every speaker, regardless of their viewpoint on the spectrum, is treated with respect and that we actually hear them,” Jones explained. “So we will recess as often as we need to, to make sure that everybody is heard.” After various citizens voiced their concerns to those in attendance, Jhorielle Perez, a current UT San Antonio student took to the podium. “As a young Chicana Filipino woman, I cannot begin to express the horror that I feel when I read these headlines every single morning my black and brown sisters and brothers, my immigrant siblings and the allies that believe in our right to exist in peace, now live in fear,” Perez stated. After stepping down from the podium, she had the following to say to The Paisano during an interview. “We need more young people here, the future of our nation. We need them to show up, to exercise their right to their First Amendment and to register to vote and to do as much as they can to prevent this from happening,” Perez emphasized. The public comment session lasted over seven hours; the city council meeting adjourned at 8:23 p.m. Jones’ next town hall meeting was rescheduled to Feb. 2 at 6 p.m., located at Walker Ranch Senior Center, 835 West Rhapsody Dr.
Carlos Craig/The Paisano
Awaiting his turn to approach the podium to speak infront of city council members, Alberto Peña protests during Thursday’s meeting.
Self identified independent journalist Hernando Arce dressed in a fake ICE uniform was shouted at by an overwhelming majority of people inside the municipal building.