City of Santa Barbara Announces Emergency Immigration Town Hall as ICE Raids Increase

The City of Santa Barbara has scheduled an emergency meeting for Tuesday, July 15, 2025, to be co-hosted by the 805 Immigration Coalition in response to the ongoing immigration enforcement in the region. The meeting is scheduled to be held at the Franklin Neighborhood Center on East Montecito Street.

Highlights

• On Tuesday, July 15, 2025, the City of Santa Barbara will be co-hosting an emergency town hall with the 805 Immigration Coalition.
• Councilmembers Oscar Gutierrez, Wendy Santamaria, and Kristen Sneddon have called the meeting to discuss the effects of the immigration raids.
• Translations will be available for Spanish-speaking attendees.

Meeting to be Held in Response to Immigration Enforcement in the Region

The meeting was announced via social media on late Sunday afternoon by Councilmembers Oscar Gutierrez, Wendy Santamaria, and Kristen Sneddon. The City of Carpinteria had also held a special city council meeting on July 10 to address the issue of immigration enforcement, after ICE conducted large-scale raids at two Glass House Farms locations in Carpinteria and Camarillo, resulting in over 300 arrests.

Councilmember Sneddon, one of those who requested the city meeting, posted a statement to social media saying that she stood with the city of Carpinteria, the community, and the elected officials who were at the scene of the raid. She said, “I stand with the City of Carpinteria, with the Congressman and Supervisor, and with COMMUNITY against the militarization of agents.”

She continued, “We don’t need ICE here. We need to stand together in unity against these raids. We need our community members back.” The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors will also be discussing the immigrant issue during their regular meeting on Tuesday, July 15. It was added to the agenda on Friday to brainstorm possible responses from Santa Barbara County and the effects that the raids have been having on the community.

The Emergency Town Hall is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 15, at 1136 East Montecito Street at the Franklin Neighborhood Center. Spanish-speaking attendees can access live Spanish Translations.