San Antonio Mayor urges federal protection for military families

San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones has written to U.S. Department of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, requesting that federal agencies reconsider immigration enforcement practices targeting the relatives of service members.

The request follows the detention of Giovanna Perez, a military spouse, by immigration officials at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi in September. Perez, a mother of four who entered the U.S. as a child, was reportedly apprehended while attempting to collect military identification cards required to access healthcare and family benefits.

Mayor Jones expressed concern that aggressive enforcement could undermine military readiness and discourage interest in service. She advocated for the prioritization of legal pathways to citizenship, such as the military parole in place program, which is designed to protect qualifying non-citizen family members of service members and veterans.