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Fear and anger over immigration in San Luis Obispo County

August 7, 2025

By KAREN VELIE

Dozens of community members voiced their concerns that federal agents are kidnapping undocumented immigrants off the streets during an emotional San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday

Yearly, the county applies for grants from Homeland Security to be used to protect the county and its infrastructure. Of this year $316,483 grant, $219,569 was earmarked for the SLO County Sheriff’s Office for equipment such as helmets, night vision binoculars, and drones.

In the days leading up to the supervisor meeting, social media postings alleged local law enforcement would use the grant funds to support ICE and the deportation of immigrants. The posts wanted the public to ask the Board of Supervisors to reject the grant funds.

Prior to public comment, Sheriff Ian Parkinson explained his department is not involved in immigration and is following state laws regarding assisting ICE.

“There is a lot of misinformation out there,” Parkinson said. “We cannot participate and we do not participate with ICE. Until the law changes, we are going to follow the law.”

Public speakers voiced their concerns that taking federal money could lead to ICE demanding assistance in removing undocumented immigrants. Community members talked of kidnappings, torture and Nazi style concentration camps.

“Its exactly like what happened in Germany where people are snatched and sent to the gulag,” Debbie Highfill said. “Masked men grabbing people, and we think this is from decades past bad behavior. I would like to see this money refused.”

Supervisor Bruce Gibson asked Parkinson if his department will identity what agencies are operating in SLO County.

Parkinson said that people have a right to know who is arresting them, and that before laying hands on a suspect, law enforcement should identify themselves. Ian then condemned the doxing of ICE agents.

Gibson said the grant funds do not tie the county to ICE while condemning the federal agency.

“What we’ve seen from ICE is inhumane, it’s illegal, it’s immoral, and frankly, it’s un-American,” Gibson said. “I don’t think that rejecting $300,000 of these monies is going to send nearly as strong a message as you have today.”

The board then voted unanimously to approve the consent agenda, including accepting the Homeland Security grant money.

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Parkinson and the board putting violent criminals above the welfare, security and societal cohesion of their constituents. Parkinson needs to grow a spine for the good people of this county and defy nonsense state law and work with ice to clean out our jail


38

detainer = no cooperation


warrant = cooperation


-16

Bruce, isn’t it time for you to go away and retire already. You’ve been a worthless supervisor for a long time.


49

ICE is enforcing the law. They are not Nazi’s, this is not 1930’s Germany. The people here illegally have broken the law and it is the federal government’s duty and right to enforce the law.


60

Don’t think we’re headed in that direction, you should read this. The white supremacists are jubilant, say Trump is the best thing that ever happened to them. It’s a slippery slope, but we’re definitely on it.


https://www.reuters.com/investigations/american-nazis-aryan-freedom-network-is-riding-high-trump-era-2025-08-08/


-35

So…. Many folks like what Trump’s doing – are they all white supremacist then?…


2

I hope they turned over my undocumented neighbor after he beat his wife a month ago who is also undocumented. She was more afraid of the wife beater husband than the sherriffs since she called them after he was done beating on her.


43

I came to this county with my Green Card; in 1974 I was naturalized an American Citizen at the San Luis Obispo County Court House. Today many illegal opportunists have drained our general welfare and exceeded our ability to fund it. We certainly need to round up those who are illegal troublemakers first, then next we need to expose the illegal government misappropriation of funds that have grossly depleted our ability to provide basic services, like the local naturalization process as was afforded to me. My focus is on the numerous derelicts of duty government agencies that are among us. My hope is that the Feds come here and clean our house, our State, so that our neighbors, the inhabitants that want better for themselves and their families will have a path to be better than us because they have worked harder than us. To me, sending decency back to their country of origin has the same ring as shipping them back to Africa did 75 years ago.


35

they’re just here for a better life…YOURS


9

“Its exactly like what happened in Germany where people are snatched and sent to the gulag,”

Such a ridiculous comparison….


45

If you are here illegally you are not being kidnapped… you are being deported… the very same thing would happen to me if I overstayed my visa in Mexico… their immigration police would track me down and arrest me and deport me…

If you are a hard working law abiding migrant here illegally take the thousand bucks the feds are offering and go home and apply to return legally….

The fact that you have a job waiting for you here will speed the process up…


48

Daughter of Episcopal minister taken by ICE, five months before Visa set to expire. Spends four days in detention. And there are plenty more stories like this. Shows the incredible inefficiency of this operation, not to mention the millions they are spending on detaining law abiding people. Obama deported more undocumented in history and even put the worst of them in cages. But he did not terrorize people and did not waste taxpayers’ money.


https://people.com/priests-daughter-nervous-before-routine-visa-hearing-detained-by-ice-days-11784686


-23

((violin playing))


Sob stories do NOT play here.


ILLEGAL means ILLEGAL


#DeportThemAll (with malice if need be)


16

A “deportation” under the Obama Administration was defined as turning someone around as they attempted to step across the border. Democrats are so clever (so they think) at inventing new definitions for words.


0

Arresting criminals and kidnapping people off the streets are actually 2 different things, but I can understand how the traffickers want to retain their indentured labor and illegal voters.


Here’s what normal folks hunk:


Border Encounters, Apprehensions Hit Record Low in July: Homeland Security

https://link.theepochtimes.com/mkt_app/us/border-encounters-apprehensions-hit-record-low-in-july-homeland-security-5896884?utm_medium=app&c=share_pos1&pid=iOS_app_share&utm_source=iOS_app_share


Border Encounters, Apprehensions Hit Record Low in July: Homeland Security

https://link.theepochtimes.com/mkt_app/us/border-encounters-apprehensions-hit-record-low-in-july-homeland-security-5896884?utm_medium=app&c=share_pos1&pid=iOS_app_share&utm_source=iOS_app_sh


19

Gibson, like all Democrats, is sad he’s losing potential voters.


35

Actually, I think the Dems are just fooling themselves. Most Hispanics will not vote Democrat! They are God Fearing, Family oriented, hard working people. They tend to be Conservative. I think this was all about Obama signing Agenda 30. Part of that socialist agenda is that you can live in the world wherever you choose! Part of bringing on the OWO??


23

100%


REAL American Patriot #Hispanics4Trump, #Hispanics4TRUERepublicans and the Rule of Law.


WE have ZERO care for ILLEGAL INVADERS that absolutely affect our American way of life.


#SelfDeport


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