It seems as though the term, "sanctuary city" has acquired a number of different meanings. Initially, the term was coined by American churches in the 1980s, and referred to humanitarian efforts to create havens in U.S. communities for the victims of civil wars in South and Central America. These cities put forward policies under which police officers and other city employees were not obligated to report illegal immigrants to immigration authorities.
What was the rationale for these policies? Well, this is where the definition of "sanctuary city" gets a little murky. Some contend that the protection was needed to prevent illegal immigrants from being targeted by criminals. (absent the policies, these criminals would not have to fear that their victims would report them to the police.) Others emphasize the notion that if illegals were not allowed to report crimes without the fear of deportation, a lot of criminals would go free.
Many cities extended protections and decided to not deny services on the basis of immigration status. Thus, illegal immigrants could have access to public libraries or send their children to public schools. Some cities, such as New York and Cambridge, Mass., allow illegals to use the public health system and, as noted above, allow them to report crimes without fear of deportation. So there is no real working definition of the term, "sanctuary city." Rather, there are gradations of different policies.
