Some quick-thinking Seattle residents appear to have thwarted a possible Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) sweep when a group of immigration agents attempted to enter a residential building in the city’s South Park neighborhood, home to a significant Latino population. Victoria Mena of Colectiva Legal del Pueblo said that when the half dozen agents, some of whom were in plainclothes, tried to go inside without a judicial warrant, they were turned away:
The incident was enough for the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network (WAISN) to send out a statewide alert to its followers to be on the lookout for ICE activity. A person living at the South Park apartment building called the WAISN Raid Reporting Hotline around 9:30 a.m. to report what was going on.
That triggered a response from immigrants rights activists who went to the scene - near the corner of Cloverdale and 14th Avenue South - and began documenting the ICE agents' vehicles and attire. Mena said they left before Colectiva Legal del Pueblo's lawyers could make it there.
"Everybody needs to know their rights, they don't have to let ICE in without a warrant signed by a judge," Mena said. The group handed out fliers Thursday asking anyone who spots ICE activity to call the Raid Reporting Hotline.
In a joint statement, Seattle Council members Lorena Gonzalez and Lisa Herbold praised the actions of the residents, who were “armed with knowledge from a Know Your Rights training.” Groups all across the nation have led similar training informing immigrants of their rights, including when they can deny ICE agents entry into their homes.
"What happened [Thursday] morning is a terrifying reminder that knowing your rights also means knowing what to do if I.C.E. shows up,” the council members said. “Knowing what to look for or whom to turn to in the moment is vital to ensuring that legal processes are followed and, thus, preventing a catastrophic outcome.”
As Patch notes, residents and community members also feared “collateral arrests,” which is when ICE targets one person but then arrests anyone else that happens to be there as well. These are often undocumented immigrants with no criminal record, and these arrests have seen a frightening spike since Donald Trump unshackled ICE agents.
The council members also credited the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network’s Rapid Response Team, “who helped monitor the situation and photographed the agents’ unmarked cars. The agents soon dispersed. To the knowledge of those on the scene, no one was detained by agents at or near the apartment building today.”
This isn’t the first time the neighborhood’s immigrant residents have been targeted. According to Patch, this past spring the area was also blanketed with despicable flyers instructing residents to call ICE on undocumented immigrants. The poster was later identified as Will Skubi, who said his intention was "not to intimidate neighbors," but to "encourage citizens to report to ICE directly to report illegal immigrants.” Fuck off, dude.
In response, neighborhood residents distributed their own flyers in English, Spanish and Vietnamese reading that "wherever you're from, we're glad you're our neighbor.”
