The City of Glendale continues to reaffirm its commitment to serve every resident of Glendale, regardless of immigration status. From the Glendale Police Department to Central Library, Glendale has a variety of resources to provide.
In a public statement, Glendale Police Chief Robert Castro assured residents that the Glendale Police Department is here to protect all members of the Glendale community.
“Our responsibility is to protect the lives of the community we are sworn to serve and honor the principles of democracy upon which this country was founded,” said Chief Castro, noting that the fundamental duties of GPD are based on public safety.
He continued, “The Glendale Police Department does not have the authority nor the responsibility to incarcerate or detain individuals solely based on immigration status.”
The Glendale City Council recently took the formal step to support Chief Castro’s statement.That statement is grounded on GPD Policy 415, which explains that current police policy prohibits the detention of any individual for a civil violation of federal immigration laws.
“Equal enforcement of the law is an important commitment. Officers are confident in this commitment, which allows them to protect, serve, and recognize the dignity of all persons, regardless of immigration status,” reads a summary of the policy, which can be found on the city’s immigration policy page at glendaleca.gov.
Armenian and Spanish editions of a summary of Policy 415 and Chief Castro’s statement can be found here. Full editions of Policy 415 are also available in Armenian and Spanish.
The good folks at Glendale Library, Arts and Culture are doing their part to serve every segment of the Glendale community. Free citizenship classes are available every Wednesday at Library Connection @ Adams Square to individuals with a green card.
Prospective students need only pre-register to begin learning the English, civic and history requirements to pass their U.S. citizenship test. Library Connection @Adams Square is located at 1100 E. Chevy Chase Dr. in Glendale. To learn more or pre-register, call Jonathan Fein Proaño at (818) 937-2869.
In addition to free citizenship classes, the library’s Immigration & Citizenship webpage offers a lot of helpful online resources, including materials to prepare for a citizenship test and relevant books available for check out at the library. A full list of resources can be at glendaleca.gov or by calling the library at (818) 548-2020.
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