Welcome back to The Weekly Wrap, our Friday roundup of stories that explain the problems oppressing people in cities and elevate the solutions that bring us closer to economic, environmental and social justice.

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ICE Raids Are Pushing Child Care Services to the Brink

A new survey from the Associated Press shows that three-quarters of American adults see child care costs as a “major problem.” But the country’s fragile child care systems, which rely on immigrant women’s labor and already face acute staffing shortages, are now even more vulnerable with the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration raids.

The Hechinger Report reports that some daycare centers have noticed immigrant parents have been less likely to drop their children off. Out of fear of being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, many immigrant parents have been less likely to leave their homes. The Trump administration has upended long-held policies that prevented ICE from entering child care facilities.

The 19th reports that a Seattle child care worker set to open her own day care for disabled children was detained last month. Nannies for individual families are also afraid for their safety; the Los Angeles Times reports that Southern California nannies feared going to public spaces with the children they care for out of fear of being stopped by ICE.

20 States Sue Trump Administration Over Disaster Prevention Cuts

A group of states filed a lawsuit this week against the government in hopes of blocking the Trump administration from cutting billions of grant dollars that were supposed to fund infrastructural upgrades to protect against extreme weather events.

In the lawsuit, the group of 20 mostly Democratic-led states claim that the Federal Emergency Management Agency lacks the power to cancel funding from the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities after it was approved by Congress, Reuters reports.

This lawsuit comes right after a series of disasters have rocked several regions across the United States. Earlier this month, flash floods resulted in the deaths of more than 130 people and overwhelmed emergency response systems. Another series of floods across New York and New Jersey killed another two people this week.

Mexico City Announces Affordable Housing Plan To Combat Gentrification

Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada Molina has announced a new initiative to create thousands of affordable housing units to offset the impacts of gentrification for residents.

The mayor’s Public Rental Housing program will add about 20,000 new rental homes to improve the long-term housing deficit, Mexico News Daily reports. Rent prices for these homes will take up no more than 30% of the tenants’ income.

This comes after recent protests showed many locals’ frustration at how businesses and housing prices seem to be catering to monied foreigners who can afford the rapidly rising housing costs. Mexicans chanted and held signs telling Americans to ‘go home’ and to speak Spanish in their city, the New York Times reports.

Native Florida Tribe Sues ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ Detention Center in the Everglades

The Florida Miccosukee Tribe has joined environmental groups’ lawsuit against state and federal agencies that allowed the construction of the so-called “Alligator Alcatraz” immigrant detention center in the state’s Everglades National Park.

The group’s case argues that the agencies involved did not seek an environmental review before opening the center in a park that is home to several endangered species, Grist reports. The tribe’s filing also says the controversial detention center is near the community’s villages, traditional hunting grounds and ceremonial sites.

Los Angeles Offers Cash to Immigrants Affected By Mass Raids

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has announced plans to provide direct cash assistance for residents affected by the immigration raids, which have disrupted immigrant-run small businesses across the region. The support is aimed at preventing families from facing eviction in the high-cost-of-living city, the L.A. Times reports.

Cash cards, expected to be available sometime this month, will be funded by philanthropic partners with the city and will be distributed to those in need by immigrant rights groups. It is not yet clear who will qualify.

In a press conference, Mayor Bass recounted how she had spoken to a family facing eviction after one of the breadwinners was detained by ICE during an immigration raid. The aid announcement comes as the children of immigrants who may not feel safe leaving their homes are taking over their parents’ small businesses, including family taco stands, to stop them from shutting down, NBC Los Angeles reports.

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MORE NEWS

• More cities are joining a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s attempts to withhold federal funding. Stateline

  Food banks in Texas are rationing food for flood victims thanks to the Trump admin’s budget cuts. Grist

  The Pentagon has ended the deployment of thousands of troops in Los Angeles. NPR

  Climate change is making the intense rainstorms that flooded NYC more common. The Guardian

  Most of the immigrants detained in Southern California last month had no criminal convictions. L.A. Times

  The Trump administration has handed over personal data from Medicaid recipients to ICE. Associated Press

  The U.S. DOT has cancelled $4 billion of unspent grant money slates for a high-speed rail project in California. Smart Cities Dive

  Office spaces could create more than 17,000 new homes for NYC, comptroller’s report says. 6sqft.com

OPPORTUNITIES & RESOURCES

• Open Society Foundations is accepting applications for its Leadership in Government Fellowship. Apply by July 24. (Disclosure: Next City board chairman Eric Shaw is a current fellow.)

• Main Street America is accepting applications for its Backing Small Businesses grant program. Apply by July 31.

• Norfolk Southern’s Thriving Communities Grant and the Safety First Grant are accepting applications for initiatives that drive community resilience and local economic development; public safety and first responder readiness; and sustainability and workforce development. Apply by Sept. 1.

• Check out Next City’s jobs board for new opportunities.

EVENTS

• July 22 at 11:30 a.m. Pacific: The Terner Center is hosting a webinar on strategies to decarbonize and increase the climate resilience of subsidized housing.

• July 23 at 1 p.m. Pacific: The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is hosting a webinar on the effects of eviction on Black women’s health and on entire communities. (Disclosure: RWJF currently funds Next City.)

• July 24 at 3 p.m. Eastern: Urban Institute is hosting a virtual and in-person discussion on the past, present and future of credit scores in the housing finance ecosystem.

• Check out events from Next City and our partners here!

This post was originally published on Next City.