This segment originally aired Dec. 12, 2016, on VICE News Tonight on HBO.
President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to block funding to sanctuary cities as part of his plan to remove criminal undocumented immigrants from the country. But Santa Fe, New Mexico Mayor Javier Gonzales says the city will not change its status as a city that provides sanctuary for undocumented workers. Running afoul of Trump’s plan could put the city at risk of losing $6.1 million in federal funding, or 2 percent of its annual budget.“There’s no real, official or legal definition of what a sanctuary city is, and there’s all different kinds,” said Migration Policy Institute policy analyst Faye Hipsman. “Sanctuary policies can be passed by or adopted by cities, states, but also counties or even individual correction centers.”Santa Fe’s sanctuary laws have been in place since 1999.“These types of policies are policies that directly cut through the fabric of communities that are striving to create opportunity and equal access to the American dream,” Gonzales told VICE News correspondent Antonia Hylton.Read next: Supreme Court case could make it harder for Donald Trump to deport millions of people