Elected officials and immigrant advocacy organizations in Queens are urging undocumented immigrants to familiarize themselves with their rights as the Trump administration prepares to conduct Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in New York City.
Recent media reports suggest that ICE agents are set to begin raids in New York shortly after President Donald Trump’s inauguration. Trump, speaking just before taking office, pledged that his administration would “begin the largest deportation exercise in American history,” with raids reportedly planned to start in Chicago before expanding to Miami and New York City.
In response, the immigrant advocacy group Make the Road New York has been holding regular “Know Your Rights” workshops for local communities since last November’s election. These presentations aim to empower undocumented residents by educating them on their constitutional rights and how to respond in the event of an ICE raid.
Luba Cortes, civil rights and immigration lead organizer at Make the Road NY, said the organization has made significant efforts to make undocumented immigrants aware of their rights under the Fourth and Fifth Amendments of the US Constitution.
The Fourth Amendment, which protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government, and the Fifth Amendment, which guarantees due process and protects people from self-incrimination, both apply to undocumented immigrants regardless of their immigration status, Cortes said.
Make the Road is urging any individuals experiencing an ICE raid to “plead the fifth and lawyer up immediately.”
The organization also advises undocumented immigrants to avoid answering knocks on the door, stating that opening the door to ICE agents gives them implied consent to enter their homes.
“If you see someone at your door, you don’t open it, ask who it is,” said Cortes, adding that if they’re not identifying themselves, you don’t have to engage with them. “If they say that they have a warrant, request to see the warrant either (by it) being slipped through the mail slot or under the door.”
She also encouraged undocumented immigrants to be aware of the difference between judicial warrants and administrative warrants, stating that judicial warrants contain a judge’s signature and give ICE agents the right to enter a home. Administrative warrants, on the other hand, contain a stamp and do not authorize a search.
Cortes added that ICE agents will possess an administrative warrant about “99%” of the time.
“People don’t know the difference, so they assume it’s a valid warrant and they let them in,” Cortes said. “We really want people to understand the difference between those two warrants and what gives ICE the power to come to your home.”
Cortes additionally warned of the dangers of spreading misinformation, stating that Trump’s previous term in office was marked by misinformation “spreading like wildfire.”
“We’ve seen that in the past, where an individual sees someone and assumes it’s ICE and then they will start spreading that information,” Cortes said. “People are not taking the subway because they think ICE is there, but it was actually just like a police officer.”