“What does ‘sanctuary city’ mean? Why is Philadelphia a sanctuary city?”
These were questions raised by Philly-based Latine immigrant rights group Juntos almost a decade ago as the group campaigned for an end to the practice of city agencies sharing their database with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Filmmaker and journalist Kristal Sotomayor captured the battle in their award-winning documentary Expanding Sanctuary, which chronicled the fight that led up to the termination of the PARS agreement by former Mayor Jim Kenney.
Eight years later, the landmark passing of the “ICE Out” legislation package (which codifies that termination into city law) has made Expanding Sanctuary more relevant than ever as the Trump Administration’s overhaul of ICE operations has led to re-examination of what it truly means for Philadelphia to be classified a sanctuary city. Sotomayor spoke with the Philly Plain Dealer about the journey behind the film, as well as how life for Philly’s immigrant communities has changed in the years that followed.
Expanding Sanctuary follows Linda Hernández — mother, immigrant, and Philadelphian — as she joins Juntos’ campaign to end the practice of database sharing between city government and ICE. During the film we see Linda prepare for activism alongside her impending wedding, culminating in the most powerful image of the film: Hernandez attending a protest at City Hall in her wedding dress alongside her husband on the day of their wedding. Sotomayor lets their audience into Linda’s life to see the full scope of how one wife and mother helped change Philadelphia forever.
The power of radical joy is highlighted throughout the film in a deeply moving way as we watch Linda come into her own as an activist and forge a community within Juntos. The climax of the film, in which we see former Mayor Kenney announce the end of official PARS contracts between Philadelphia and ICE, is made twice as powerful after being welcomed into the communities most affected by it through Sotomayor’s camera.
From April 29 to April 30, Sotomayor curated the most recent edition of Table Sessions, an event series run by local non-profit Journey Arts. Organized around the concept of “radical joy”, a screening of Expanding Sanctuary was held at Bartram’s Gardens, followed by talkbacks with Sotomayor and Hernández. The night also featured a meal prepared by James Beard-award winner Cristina Martínez and a musical performance by Mariposas Galácticas.
“I’m very thankful to Table Sessions.” Sotomayor said. “I think in this moment [events like] Table Sessions are really important because a lot of people are scared right now, but I think we’re giving folks an opportunity to celebrate and be joyful in community. I think being able to center joy allows everybody to join in, you know?”
On the motherhood at the core of the film, Sotomayor said “It’s really about how a mother’s love can protect a community. I think when you watch Expanding Sanctuary you get to meet amazing community members like Linda, who had a deportation in her family that really affected her children. Getting to sit with her, go to her wedding, see them eat together as a family, I feel like that really has a way of changing people’s perspectives on immigration, because if not immigrants are just considered other. Expanding Sanctuary puts a face to the issue.”
Since President Donald Trump retook office in January of 2026, recorded immigration-related arrests of people without criminal records has risen rapidly. “[The film] is proof that if we could change policy in [Trump’s] first administration, we can change policy in the second administration.” Sotomayor’s words proved right on May 7 when Mayor Cherelle Parker approved six out of seven of the bills within the “ICE Out” package, leading to all being enshrined into law.
“Linda did speak at City Hall as part of ‘ICE Out’,” Sotomayor said. “It’s pretty incredible. There’s always more that can be done to support immigrant communities, but this is a really amazing step forward. I’d love to see other legislation also passed, like driver’s licenses approved for people who are undocumented, let people feel safe being able to drive their children to school or drive to work and not be worried about the ramifications of not having a license. I think Expanding Sanctuary is one of the many films that talks about how we can change legislation together to support each other.”
Speaking as a storyteller, Sotomayor said “The work that I do is creating images, and those images impact people. So for me, being able to hold a camera and tell these stories, it’s really important to tell them accurately and present them in a way that will uplift the community. [Expanding Sanctuary] is not always the way Latinos are portrayed in media, right? So being able to tell this story means a lot to me, it’s part of an archive of stories that I would have loved to have seen growing up. It would have made a big difference in my life as a child to have seen a woman [like Linda] who is a single mother, supporting her daughters, changing laws, fighting for her community. When we see images like that we can imagine a better future for ourselves.”
Expanding Sanctuary is now available on demand via Kanopy.
Leave a Reply