When Donald Trump was elected president in 2016 on an anti-immigrant platform pledging to build a wall between the United States and Mexico, NUHW wasted no time mobilizing to protect the rights of its members and their patients.
After membership meetings and surveys throughout California, NUHW passed a resolution declaring itself a Sanctuary Union and committing itself to safeguard its members from the new president’s immigration dragnet with the same fierce determination that it protects them against rogue employers.
With Trump returning to the White House, NUHW’s Executive Board moved to expand its Sanctuary Union resolution to include protecting the rights of transgender people and reflect the more aggressive posture the second Trump Administration has taken in targeting immigrants, including those who are seeking medical care.
“Our updated resolution speaks to the real danger facing so many of the most vulnerable people in our country, and our commitment as a union to stand up for our members and patients,” NUHW President Sophia Mendoza said. “This is a defining moment, and we all have to get into the arena and fight for justice and equal rights.”
Since taking office, President Trump has targeted immigrants by unconstitutionally ordering the end to birthright citizenship, while beginning mass deportations of undocumented immigrants as well as many who entered the country legally during the Biden administration. Trump has also rescinded a prohibition on immigration raids at or near sensitive locations including healthcare facilities.
After attacking transgender rights during the campaign, Trump signed executive orders reinstating the military ban on transgender service members and removing coverage for gender-affirming care from federal health insurance policies.
“NUHW stands firm in our position that everyone has a fundamental human right to health care,” Mendoza said. “Our members provide life-saving, evidenced-based health care. Stripping access to healthcare from people based on political or religious ideology is not only unethical, it’s a tool of discrimination that violates the constitutional rights of patients.”
NUHW has a long tradition of defending the right to health care. During the height of the AIDS epidemic, NUHW leaders instituted the first union policy educating members about the disease to quell concerns about treating patients with HIV/AIDS.
The updated resolution commits NUHW to “actively protect the rights and safety of every member” and requests that employers where NUHW work declare themselves “safe zones” so that no one feels threatened when seeking medical care. NUHW will also not voluntarily cooperate with federate agents to enforce immigration laws or collect personal information on members that might reveal their immigration status, except as required by federal I-9 requirements applicable to NUHW employees.
