How To Protect Your Immigrant Neighbors From ICE Raids

Answering common FAQs on countering ICE raids, and providing 7 meaningful ways to better protect our immigrant and undocumented neighbors

Over the past few months as ICE fascists have escalated their abusive tactics in Chicago, I’ve joined thousands of my fellow Chicagoans to protest them loudly and in the streets, a right our First Amendment guarantees. Meanwhile, the Trump regime is doing everything possible to target immigrants, create fear, and fabricate excuses to deploy the military on immigrants and on U.S. born citizens.

As an immigrant myself, and as someone fortunate to work as a human rights lawyer, this anti-immigrant hate strikes to my core. And that’s why I’m speaking up without hesitation. In this piece I provide guidance on how to protect your rights when ICE tries to strip them away, and I provide clear action items on how you can work to protect immigrant rights. As I’ve said before, I cannot do this alone—I need your partnership. I am grateful for your trust to stand united against fascism.

Let’s Address This.

A protestor holds up a sign in front of the ICE facility in Broadview, IL. [Photo Credit: Qasim Rashid]

Before diving in, here’s a short clip of me protesting ICE fascists at the Broadview, IL facility just this week. Police forced me to move under threat of arrest. The irony of forcing us to move when we were already behind a barricade, hundreds of meters from the ICE facility, even as ICE kept their illegal fence to prevent our access despite a federal judicial ruling to have it removed immediately.

We will continue to show up and speak our truth as is our Constitutional right, and as is our neighborly duty to every person in this country. Now, let’s dive into what you should know if you are stopped by ICE.

Part 1: Answering FAQs

Here are answers to four of the most common questions I’ve received on how to protect yourself during these ICE raids. ICE is short for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Feel free to post additional questions in the comments and I will do my best to answer them, or direct you to the right resource.

1. In light of ICE raids, should I send my child to school?

Student and child safety is of paramount importance. Trump is sending his cronies into schools, while lying about who they are, and refusing to show ID—all to literally kidnap children and deport them. This is absolutely fascism. So what do we do?

1. Call your local board of education and teacher’s union now to understand what steps they are taking to protect your children, and how you can be involved.

2. Demand your city council break any agreements with ICE, including what is commonly known as 287(g) agreements. Instead, ensure this remains a local matter, not a Federal matter (more on this below).

3. This cannot only be an action taken by immigrant parents. I especially ask those who are US citizens or do not have undocumented children to stand firm as an ally—contact your local board of education and teacher’s union and ask them how you can get involved.

2. What do I do if I am stopped by ICE?

If stopped by an ICE agent, do your best to remain calm. And while the following information is not official legal advice (mandatory disclaimer), this is what I would do myself, and have advised my legal clients to do:

1. Have memorized your A number, phone number of your lawyer, and of your family.

2. Do not speak to ICE agents without your lawyer present. If you are asked to speak, give testimony, or sign any document—exercise your right to remain silent.

3. Do not lie or give false documents or false statements. Know that ICE agents are allowed to lie to you to get you to speak. You are not allowed to lie to ICE agents. You will not outsmart them, nor will it do you any good to lie to them. Stay silent.

4. If an ICE agent appears your door, you do not have to allow them to enter your home unless they have a criminal search warrant signed by a judge. You are completely within your rights to turn them away, or refuse to open the door, if they do not provide you a signed warrant.

5. Know the difference between an ICE detainer and a judicial warrant. Only a judicial warrant allows for someone’s arrest. An ICE detainer is a self-created document that ICE uses to give the perception of legitimacy. An ICE detainer is as valid as a stained napkin, and belongs in the garbage can just like said napkin. If an ICE fascist shows up with an ICE detainer, you are not under any legal obligation to go with them. Only if they show up with a judicial warrant are you legally required to go with them. Regardless, do not speak to ICE for any reason.

In short, the only words you should say to ICE agents are to ask if they have a judicial warrant for your arrest. If they do not, send them on their way. If they do, then request to speak with your lawyer and say no more to ICE. Citizen or not, documented immigrant or not—your documentation status does not restrict your right to speak to a lawyer. Exercise your rights.

3. Should I call local police for help?

Calling your local police to stop ICE officers is not necessarily a great idea. Certain jurisdictions have what are known as 287g agreements, which means local police are working for ICE. Thus, in such a situation, calling your local police potentially obliges them to arrest you on behalf of ICE. If you have questions or concerns on how to respond to ICE agents, call your lawyer, and let your lawyer speak on your behalf. As promised, more on 287g agreements below.

4. What If I do not have a lawyer?

It is advisable to reach out to lawyers ahead of time in case you need to call them in an emergency. You can (and need to be) fully transparent with your lawyer about your immigration status. They will only be able to assist you if they have all the information needed at hand. If English is not your preferred language, most law firms have lawyers that can speak multiple languages, or have access to translators.

If you are arrested and cannot afford a lawyer, ask for a public defender. Especially if you are being charged with a crime, wait for your public defender. And to repeat yet again, no matter what, do not speak to law enforcement without a lawyer present.

Part 2: How U.S. Citizens can help protect immigrants and immigrant communities

We are not helpless. Truth requires courage. And I encourage everyone to take action. Some of the seven action items below have immediate effect and others take time. I ask you to engage in both types of calls to action. We must act quickly to protect our immigrant neighbors now, and build capacity to change fascist policy in the future.

1. Activate

Get involved in your local politics. Whether it is your local school board, your local city council, your local teacher’s union, or your local immigrant rights organization—get involved. Show up to the next meeting, meet your local elected officials, and understand the local issues impacting your community. Google is your friend in finding a local calendar of events. Use it. All politics is local, and it is critical you get involved locally.

2. Communicate

Contact your member of Congress (find them here) and relentlessly remind them that you do not support mass deportations or ICE raids. Instead, you do support due process of law, a humane immigration policy, and equal rights for immigrants. Ensure they hear your outrage as much as possible. They have to document how many times they are called and on what subject, so ensure they know a just immigration system matters to you.

3. Invest

Invest your time and your money into the people and organizations doing the front line work. If you have time to volunteer, make phone calls, knock doors, and sign petitions, do so. If you have the financial resources to donate to organizations working to protect our democracy, please do so. Start by donating to your local immigration rights orgs.

4. Educate

It is critical we remain informed on the key issues, by educating ourselves and those around us. As corporate media sadly continues to capitulate to fascism, support writers and human rights lawyers working to stop fascism in America (e.g. like yours truly). Read the work of non-profit media like ProPublica, The Appeal, and more. We may not have the billions of dollars in dark money from corporate autocrats, but we have strength in numbers and your support makes that difference.

5. Organize

Bring friends with you. You are the best ambassador for justice in your friend group—lead by example. I myself contacted a lawyer friend (Rachel Cohen) to attend an anti-ICE protest, and I’ve since pulled several people with me to attend. Grab even one friend and drag them with you to the next school board meeting, city council session, or town hall in your local community. We need to build organizational capacity, and means each one reaches one to get involved. (And when your friend comes to the second meeting, it is their opportunity to reach one more and bring them with).

6. Sanctuary Locations

During the previous Trump regime, some 800 or more churches, synagogues, and other houses of worship established themselves as sanctuary locations for immigrants. These are locations that invited immigrants who feared deportation to remain within their walls for housing, food, and safety. To be clear, these sanctuary locations have no particular legal authority, and ICE agents can still procure a warrant to search sanctuary locations and arrest anyone a judge has authorized for arrest.

However, these sanctuary locations served as another line of protection for those fearing such raids. These locations forced ICE to have to make the decision of whether they want to violently raid a house of worship. And given the passing of the Laken Riley Act, which allows authorities to arrest and deport immigrants on the mere accusation of a crime—including petty and non-violent crimes like shoplifting—sanctuary locations may be a source to help protect innocent people.

Unfortunately, ICE fascists have demonstrated they have no regard for sensitive locations, and are kidnapping people from hospitals, schools, shelters, even while at their immigration hearings at court. Thus, it is critical you stay alert, and if your status is not secure, contact a lawyer to rectify your paperwork immediately.

7. Repeal 287g Agreements

Earlier I promised I’d discuss this in more detail. Here’s the background on how 287g agreements work—and why we must repeal them. The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 added Section 287(g) to the Immigration and Nationality Act. This authorized ICE to force state and local police to do what ICE wants them to do—in this case, round up immigrants.

In other words, 287g agreements allow federal ICE officers to require local and state police officers to work for them. These agreements are why it’s incredibly risky to call local police on immigration issues. And it is a devastating policy for several reasons:

• It pulls local human resources for local needs and forces them to do federal work.

• It puts women suffering abuse at risk. If an undocumented woman is suffering abuse, her abuser knows that she cannot go to law enforcement without fear of deportation, separation from her children, or permanent detention. Thus, 287g agreements perpetuate the cycle of abuse countless women already face.

• There’s no evidence this agreement makes us safer. In fact, a detailed study by the National Institute of Justice across 167 counties that enforce 287g agreements, “found no evidence that 287(g) arrangements were linked to meaningful crime reduction.”

• On the contrary, there have been hundreds and hundreds of reported cases of sexual abuse committed by ICE agents in detention facilities, and few of them are ever investigated or resolved. To ask ICE to round up immigrants, while ICE itself has a documented history of epidemic sexual abuse, is the height of absurdity and hypocrisy.

Currently, ICE has some form of a 287g agreement with now more than 1,000 police agencies across nearly all 50 states—which I have uploaded here for your convenience. This number has dramatically increased. When Trump’s term started, there were roughly 250 such agreements across 25 states. Now, there are 1067 such agreements with local police, and 60 pending 287g agreements. Only six states have banned 287g agreements (Washington, Oregon, California, Illinois, New Jersey, and Connecticut). Only one state has no active 287g agreements (Vermont). Every other state has active 287g agreements, and that is where we must get to work to repeal them.

How To Repeal 287g Agreements

These are local agreements, and can be repealed on the local level. Here’s the key call to action—287g agreements cannot go into effect until local government approves their enforcement. That means, if your locality has a 287g agreement in place, it is because your local elected officials voted for it. Therefore, they can be repealed with that same local authority. And that local authority will only act to repeal these abusive agreements if local citizens activate, organize, and invest in that change. So, if you live in one of the states or localities listed above, advocate to your city council, mayor, or relevant governing authority to repeal this harmful agreement and instead uphold meaningful justice. Show up to your next city council meeting, contact your mayor and police chief, and demand their repeal.

And if you do not live in such a locality, you can still petition your local government to pass ordinances to protect immigrants from abusive federal enforcement.

In Conclusion

Trump’s anti-immigrant raids are hurting the American people, the U.S. economy, and betrays our constitutional right to equal justice and due process. No one is claiming that the U.S. immigration system is perfect. However, the facts are clear—immigrants make our country safer, healthier, and stronger economically. Rather than falling for political propaganda that demonizes immigrants, we should focus on meaningful immigration reform that maximizes public safety, economic growth, and public health.

My immense gratitude to those who are investing their time, money, and efforts to uphold meaningful justice in America, including for immigrant communities. Do not lose hope. Instead, double down your efforts. Be relentless. In standing united, we can build a fairer, more just, and more effective immigration system that continues to advance American growth and success.