The term sanctuary city refers to localities that oppose the efforts of the federal government to enforce immigration policies. It is local city/state governments that are affected more by illegal #immigration compared to the federal government. While there is no official legislation or agreed upon definition for a sanctuary jurisdiction, there is a debate over whether or not state or local city municipalities should be allowed to be “sanctuary” jurisdictions. 

The argument in favor of sanctuary cities is that the local areas are most affected by the presence of illegal immigrants, and as such they should be able to determine if they want to actively participate in the enforcement of federal immigration policies.

Those who oppose sanctuary cities argue that they actively disobey federal law by shielding undocumented immigrants from the consequences of the law. Those that view sanctuary cities in this light, believe that they are a harm to the U.S. republic by creating areas that do not follow federal law. 

The question for debate is, should sanctuary cities for immigration be allowed in the US?