This can’t be stressed enough: everyone in the U.S., no matter their immigration status or who is president, has basic rights, and anyone who insists otherwise is wrong. But, immigrants have to know those rights in order to empower themselves. It’s the goal of a new instructional video campaign, “We Have Rights,” from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Brooklyn Defenders Service.
“As anxiety rises in immigrant communities across the country and families become more vulnerable to ICE,” the groups said in a release, “there is an urgent need for reliable information that helps immigrant communities understand their rights as well as safe, practical steps that they can take to defend themselves during encounters with ICE.”
The groups say that the series of videos—voiced by a number of celebrities and featured in multiple languages for accessibility—are a direct response to calls from the community. And, there’s strong indications that “Know Your Rights” campaigns work. The Los Angeles Times reported last year that community group-led education “had a noticeable effect on arrest operations,” leaving “agents increasingly ... stymied.”
In one of the videos on an ICE encounter at home, the narrator warns that ICE can lie and deceive in order to gain access into a home to arrest residents. This is a documented fact. ICE agents “may say they’re looking for a friend, relative or roommate. But do not be fooled, and do not open the door,” the narrator says. Immigrants should ask agents to see an ID and a warrant, instructing them to slip the items under the door. If the warrant is not signed by a judge, “ICE is not allowed to enter or search your home.”
When there’s been a 145 percent surge in the arrests of undocumented immigrants with no criminal record since Trump’s inauguration, the need to protect our communities has never been more urgent. “Immigrants are the lifeblood of America, and we need to ensure that our communities have the tools they need to effectively assert their rights,” said the ACLU’s Donna Lieberman. “The Trump administration may be determined to deport as many people as they can, but immigrants have rights and we can all take steps to protect ourselves and each other.” The videos are available here.