Editor, Manteca Bulletin,
I am, as a citizen of America and second generation born here, getting quite upset about making our state a sanctuary state- without even a vote.  I have never before seriously thought about leaving my adopted state — yes, I am an immigrant from Minnesota to California and my husband is an immigrant from Ohio to California. 
All our children and their families have been born in California and all but four of the bunch still live here.  That family of four has moved.  Boise, Idaho, is beautiful, clean, well-kept, affordable, much safer than here, etc. and seems to be a great place and safe place to live, Homes cost less than here.  It has two drawbacks that I can see, it backs up to the Rocky Mountains and forest fires which flood the valley area with smoke, are far from rare.  And it snows and it has no ocean and it sometimes floods.  At least one other of my children and his family are considering a move.  These are educated, working families who obey the laws and raise their children to be good citizens.  If this had happened while we were raising our children and my parents would also move or were no longer with us, we would also move. 
I really wish Manteca would do what some cities are doing and refuse to be part of a sanctuary state.  I do not know how this works but if you do not want to be part of a state that is essentially leaving the union, you need (all of us who feel that way need) to show that we mean what we say by refusing to be a sanctuary city.  Is this even legally possible?  I do not know.  I am an elderly woman who has traveled a lot and lived several places, mostly in California, has paid attention to what is going on in my city, county, state and country (especially when I was younger) and this is totally foreign, illegal I think, not helpful and total idiocy.
Let’s imagine for a time — we wake up tomorrow and our state has experienced a mighty earthquake affecting a great many people and our big cities — let’s say San Francisco —and the earthquake was situated in such a way and so strong that all the bridges in the bay area fell down. San Francisco is totaled as is all of the Bay Area and the greater Bay Area, while not as bad, is in terrible shape as well. There are many fires causing our fire fighters, etc. to be overburdened as well as finding it nearly impossible to drive on the damaged streets.  Hospitals are down or damaged, medical personnel injured — who do we turn to?  The country we have just left?  Mexico?  The resulting tidal wave also did damage to coastal areas up and down the coast of parts of Mexico and California as well as Hawaii.  Our country is having a lot of trouble trying to help all of them and have to cut something out — who do you think they will ignore?  Who would you ignore if you were the decision maker in DC?

  Marie Evans
Manteca