sanctuary city

Noun

sanctuary city (plural sanctuary cities)

1. (Canada, US) A city that allows undocumented immigrants to live and work without being arrested and deported by local authorities.
   • Regardless of any immediate connections Koch's directive might have had to sanctuary during the 1980s, by the time Congressional representatives were discussing the 1996 immigration reforms, New York City was coming up in policy debates as an example of a sanctuary city that should be targeted for...2012, Randy K. Lippert, Sean Rehaag, Sanctuary Practices in International Perspective, page 227
   • The president is upset with congressional leaders for slow-rolling his core campaign promise, and for failing to defund sanctuary cities in their spending bill.2018 March 21, Elaina Plott, “Trump Vents His Anger Over Border-Wall Funding”, in The Atlantic, archived from the original on 21 Mar 2018