Concerned residents are creating their own versions of rapid response teams to safely monitor immigration enforcement in their communities.
The shriek of whistles and a cacophony of cars honking have taken on new meaning on the streets of major U.S. cities in recent months — a warning to all those in earshot that immigration enforcement is nearby.
The warning tactics from activists have become popular in cities recently targeted by Border Patrol immigration operations. In Los Angeles, Chicago and Charlotte, North Carolina, residents protested immigration enforcement actions and began coordinating street patrols, organizing neighborhood watch groups and recording videos of both immigration officers apprehending people and agents carrying out operations largely while masked and in unmarked vehicles.
Community activists have denounced what they say are increasingly aggressive tactics by immigration agents as residents patrol and document immigration enforcement activity. Meanwhile, federal authorities have said community members’ actions have gotten in the way of immigration agents doing their job. Officers “will take legal and necessary steps to ensure their own safety and that of bystanders,” Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said.
Heather Morrow, a protester in Charlotte, North Carolina, faces misdemeanor charges after prosecutors allege she blocked the entrance to a Department of Homeland Security facility’s parking lot; she was initially charged with felony assault of a federal officer, but it was dropped a week later at the request of the federal government.
Joshua Long, another Charlotte resident who told NBC News he’d been verifying and documenting community reports of U.S. Border Patrol’s presence across the city as part of a local watch group, was also arrested on suspicion of assaulting a federal officer, an allegation he denies.
Amid the arrests, as well as flaring tensions and clashes between communities and immigration agents, concerned residents who are afraid the Border Patrol might target their hometowns next are looking to grassroots efforts already adopted in other cities. Many are looking to create their own versions of rapid response teams that can safely monitor immigration enforcement in their communities.
“Deportation raids are not new, but what we see in terms of scale and severity is very new, and it requires a whole new response from us regular people, as citizens, as neighbors,” Jill Garvey, a co-director of the pro-democracy group States at the Core, said during the first nationwide virtual “ICE WATCH” training session hosted with the help of community organizers from Chicago on Nov. 21.
More than 500 people attended the online training session from dozens of cities, including New York; Memphis, Tennessee; Oakland, California; and New Orleans — where some expect immigration operations to begin in December. Different people expressed fear, heartbreak, anxiety and outrage over the current state of immigration enforcement and asked for tips, including how to adjust ICE Watch strategies to fit the needs of rural communities and how to monitor enforcement efforts around sensitive locations such as churches, schools or workplaces.
The trainers told those attending that paying attention to details such as the number of agents at a specific location, what uniforms they’re wearing and the scope of their activity are key to effectively documenting immigration enforcement in their communities, understanding the tactics and identifying potential civil rights violations.
The trainees were told to not touch or physically interact with agents and to keep a safe distance while documenting any immigration enforcement activity.
McLaughlin told NBC News that “being near unlawful activities in the field does come with risks — though our officers take every reasonable precaution to mitigate dangers to those exercising their protected First Amendment rights. However, when faced with violence or attempts to impede law enforcement operations, our officers will take legal and necessary steps to ensure their own safety and that of bystanders, up to and including use of force.”
She added that immigration authorities “clearly identify themselves as law enforcement while wearing masks to protect themselves from being targeted by highly sophisticated gangs” and other criminals at a time when assaults against agents have increased.
Community efforts to monitor Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations started to solidify in June when the Border Patrol first began sustained immigration enforcement operations in Los Angeles and intensified in Chicago during a three-month immigration enforcement operation dubbed Operation Midway Blitz. The Border Patrol defended its use of tear gas and rubber bullets, which residents and local officials denounced.
When asked if people who record immigration authorities or participate in neighborhood watch group should be worried about being targeted or arrested for engaging in these activities, McLaughlin stated, “This sure looks like obstruction of justice.”
“When individuals broadcast the location of ICE, they are putting a target on the backs of officers,” she stated, “anyone who impedes, obstructs, or assaults law enforcement will be arrested and prosecuted.”
Xavier T. de Janon, a criminal attorney in North Carolina who represents Morrow and Long, said several of his clients who participated in neighborhood watch efforts to keep tabs on Border Patrol as it conducted Operation Charlotte’s Web in the city of Charlotte are facing charges.
Long, one of de Janon’s clients, said he was following a Border Patrol vehicle to verify community reports his neighborhood watch group received about its presence in Charlotte.
At one point, Long said, he was trying to move his car out of the way in a dead-end street to allow agents’ SUVs to leave. Instead, the agents used their vehicles to try to box him in, he said.
In an attempt “to pull myself out of a dangerous situation,” Long said, he drove forward, going up on a curb and around one of the SUVs trying to block him. The Border Patrol claimed Long skimmed the front of its vehicle, though “my car has no scratches on it,” he said.
As the Border Patrol followed him, Long said, he dialed 911 and told dispatchers that agents were driving aggressively toward him.
He said he kept driving and stopped the minute one of the SUVs began flashing its red and blue lights, fearing matters could worsen.
Long said a Border Patrol agent opened his car door while he was pointing a gun, pulled him out, put him against the ground and handcuffed him.
Long, who said he was compliant and did not resist, was placed in the back of an SUV and taken to an FBI office, where he was questioned. About six hours later, he was released with a federal citation for “simple assault on a federal officer,” a misdemeanor charge. Long’s court hearing is scheduled for May.
“This was a CBP violent and unnecessary arrest for someone documenting,” de Janon said.
Asked about Long’s arrest, McLaughlin stated, “While conducting an immigration enforcement operation near the intersection of Central Ave and Eastway Dr, Border Patrol arrested this US citizen for vehicular assault against a federal agent.”
De Janon said that when federal agents sign up for enforcement roles, they accept the legal reality that they can be documented and that the public can access the information.
“Unfortunately, we are living under a federal government that disagrees with this,” he said. “So there might be more risks in people just doing what they’re allowed to do and legally protected to do.”
At the same time, the Department of Homeland Security also said there have been 238 reports of assaults against ICE agents this year, compared with 19 reports last year — signaling nationwide tension around immigration enforcement tactics.
In the session, trainers emphasized the importance of conducting ICE Watch and street patrols in groups.
“We’re safer when we stick together,” said Garvey, of States at the Core. She emphasized that neighborhood watch groups are for documenting immigration enforcement happening in communities and not about interference. “It is a nonviolent tactic,” she said.
@ NBC News
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