What are the new ICE tactics?

Every day, more of our neighbors — and more people who are in the United States legally — are being swept up at immigration check-ins, traffic stops, workplaces, and public spaces. Raids have intensified in Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston, Dallas, McAllen, Brownsville, New York City, Newark, Passaic, Plainfield, Milwaukee, Waukesha, Nashville, Charlotte, Chicago, and Minneapolis.

The new approach keeps some of the old tactics, but exhibits new ones:

• Covert operations. However, instead of blasting the news and concentrating in one area to terrify the locals and capture media attention, now ICE is sending operatives to different states and cities, sneaking into the areas quietly.
• Local law enforcement cooperation is making this easier for them to do.
• Concentrating on events. They are stopping people early in the morning on their way to work. They are  messing with bystanders in their cars. They are going for community events, even sports.
• Finally, they are expanding their raids in work areas to access small businesses, like laundromats.

That's the first set of tactics that combine in this new MO of ICE. Let's see how we can respond.

People's Response

So here are some counter-tactics for you and your community to respond. Remember, this is not for you to do alone. Find some locals to work together.

Some tactics below are old, some were developed in 2025 as a response to ICE and others are in response to the current changes.

1. Put massive, immediate and unstopping pressure on your local and state government to stop ALL Law Enforcement cooperation with ICE. And demand the enforcement of this change—even new officer training if necessary. Our police should be defending our state and districts, not a rogue federal executive that is threatening state sovereignty and violating citizen’s rights. Our state and local police may be the last LEA bastion in the defense of democracy. They should not be working for the wanna-be-dictator. This battle to stop local LEA to cooperate with ICE is going on right now in many states. Check if your state is already on it and join. If it's not on, turn it on!
2. Create a business outreach team and visit your local businesses: Go to the small local businesses in your area and enroll them in a campaign to protect their business and employees against ICE. Have everyone in pairs. If you can get 2-6 people, you can start right away. Here's how:
   1. Approach the business in a collaborative attitude, as a local partner in the community and client. This partnership plays a crucial role in increasing non-compliance and solidarity to defeat a democratic backsliding. So even if you do not succeed in the immediate goal, do your best to develop a long-term relationship with the local businesses. At this time, local entrepreneurs and their community have a natural field to partner, as both are suffering from the policies of this administration and the lawless actions of ICE. Focus on that mutual need.
   2. Check first if they have a pro-democratic value and are not MAGA. That will save you time and grievance, as MAGAs will not listen. But most people—regardless of their party—understand what this regime is about and want to defend democracy.
   3. If all is well, your next step is to help them see that by defending their immigrant employees they also improve their relationship with clients and make their place safer. By being ready and proactive, they give themselves a fighting chance not to be a victim of ICE. If possible, they may be able to set aside a small enclosed area for their employees. In this case, they can place a sign on the entrance that says: “This is a private area. You cannot enter without a judicial warrant signed by a judge.” According to the law, private property is protected by the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which requires a judicial warrant signed by a judge or magistrate for law enforcement, including ICE, to enter and search private homes or non-public areas of businesses without consent. ICE has access to public areas in a business. But it needs a judicial warrant in order to enter private areas. If they push their way in, then the entrepreneur is not helpless. They now have a winning case in court. 
   4. Educate the business owner about their rights and the steps to take before, during and after ICE raids. There are organizations that hand out information. Here's a link that you can put on a card and give to both owners and workers: https://media.nilc.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/EmployerGuide-NELP-NILC-2017-07.pdf
   5. Take ready-made posters to make this easier. If you can print posters, take them with you and see if the owner is willing to put the poster immediately with your help. If not, leave it with them. The UFW foundation offers downloadable posters that you can print and take with you as you knock on doors. Go to this URL and choose “Notices for Business”: https://ufwfoundation.org/right/no-warrant-no-entry/
   6. If there are very small businesses like laundromats, that cannot create private spaces to protect their staff, give them a contact phone or phone app that they can call if ICE enters their premises to initiate a rapid response action. If you do not have a local RRN in your area, consider staring one or give them phone numbers to  the local press and local migrant organization. Take time to explain how this helps them to  receive help.
3. For bigger businesses and corporations that do not respond favorably, you can organize a local protest and  boycott or brand-ruining campaign. Think of the boycott against Home Depot or the brand-ruining campaign against Tesla. Having a group of people exposing the business' complicity with ICE day in and day out and calling the people not to enter or buy, is a powerful pressure tactic to stop business and corporate compliance with this regime. In fact, this is one of the most effective community tactics that have been employed in many local areas. Go for it. Remember: Our focus is to build the pressure to abolish ICE.
4. Create a building/home outreach team to help the buildings and homes in your neighborhood to post the “No Judicial Warrant: No Entry” poster in all entrances and for tenants to know what to do if ICE comes knocking. For posters, go to the same URL above and choose “Notices for Residences.” For private homes the poster is sufficient. For buildings it's a bit different. According to the National Immigration Law Center, a building of private residences can post a "privacy notice" or signs asserting that agents need a judicial search warrant to enter. However, while such signs express that residents wish to assert their Fourth Amendment rights, they do not legally bind federal agents or prevent entry in all situations. Fourth Amendment protections apply strongly to private homes and individual apartments. While ICE agents can legally enter the common, public-facing areas of a building (such as open lobbies, halls or public walkways), they cannot enter a specific private residence without a judicial warrant or the resident's consent. An option is to distribute the posters to the apartments. But posters at entrances are a good idea too because they have a warning effect that the community and the landlord are aware of their rights and will act. Distributing educational material to tenants is important.  If you can find out who are the tenants' leaders in Tenant's Associations, ask to see if they are already informed. If not, engage them, that can magnify the impact. Get educational material here: https://www.buildersinstitute.org/ice/
5. If you see ICE harassing drivers: You speaking up can make a difference. But you need to know what to do and what NOT to do. You want to deescalate and make it harder for ICE to get away with (literally sometimes) murder. Go here to find out how to act as a bystander to deescalate and be safe. https://www.beluminus.org/bystander/
6. When you do community events, keep an ICE Watch group outside doing the rounds. They should have whistles. If ICE moves towards the venue or event, they need to call the organizers and then blow the whistles. Have a safe plan for exit. According to the NY Attorney General, public community events held in open outdoor spaces operate under the rules of public areas. However, events held indoors or in privately rented venues can restrict access and demand judicial warrants for entry, similar to a private home or workplace.
7. Court Actions: Escorting immigrants to and from the court is best done by white people, people who are famous or have political or social cloud. This may need a more sophisticated approach. The idea is to disrupt the arrest and expose the criminality while making it garner negative attention. If possible, you can distract them to let the immigrant escape. Organizing this may not be possible for many of us. However, if you know an important local politician, faith leader or entertainer, see if they are game to work on this strategy with you. Have legal services at the ready.
8. Once you get a team to start implementing any of these tactics, the first things to do are:
   1. Educate yourselves until you are clear of people's rights, the fourth amendment, the difference between a judicial and an administrative warrant, what is going on locally and best practices.
   2. Find local legal services and have a plan to contact them immediately.

Dealing With the Sneaky ICE Approach

Another challenge we have now is that, because of the change in ICE’s MO, the coverage of ICE raids has decreased. While the local media continues to report what’s happening, the national media is distracted.

Therefore, it is up to us to use one of our People Power tools:

1. Video-witnessing events,
2. Word of Mouth (WOM),
3. The Peoples' Public Media
4. And a new one: Local Press Emergency Calls.

Here’s what we can do:

1. Video-witnessing: As we've done in the past, keep taking videos or photos of ICE’s raids from a safe distance. Here are some new considerations:
   1. Make sure that you have your cellphone set for instant transfer-- whether it goes go a digital upload, Dropbox or social media download;  in case they take away your cellphone, the videos are already out. Spread them via social media. And distribute the videos immediately.
   2. Never edit a video that documents a raid. If you want to use it for your vblog or channel, then save the original and edit a copy. Edited videos are not admissible as evidence in a court of law and we may need your video to protect someone's rights, so keep the original unedited.
   3. Keep your distance. ICE is now messing with witnesses. It is arresting them. It’s best to stay at a safe distance where you can capture what is going on without becoming a target. If they come at you and say to step away, do so while you keep video-taping. Say: “I’m moving away” as you do. If possible show your own feet stepping back and immediately show the officer coming at you. This is legal proof that you are not interfering with the arrest.
2. Use your WOM People Power. Word of Mouth is a strong tool for People Power. Use it to inform everyone around you of what is going on so that they can take immediate action. It's not difficult because as pack animals we are used to doing it immediately and instinctively. (Think parrots or monkeys.) ): That is why gossip is so quick and widespread. So use it for good! Email, call, talk with and text everyone as soon as you verify that there is a local ICE raid. Please verify. If you cry wolf too often, you know what happens! Right now, it’s important that you not only email friends in your area, but contact friends in other states and even countries and tell them to spread the word. Because the national media is either distracted or turning a blind eye, it's up to us to spread the word beyond our local communities. If you witness ICE engaged in any illegal acts, unusual cruelty or if they are victims of brutality, include the information. This allows people all around the country and the world to speak up, expose the raids and put public pressure on ICE.
3. Local Press Emergency Calls. We have phone short-cuts to dial for emergencies, such as 911. We have phone short-cuts to requests city services , such as 311 and a shortcut, 411, for directory assistance. But now we need to also engage our local media immediately to report on ICE lawless raids. Unfortunately, local media doesn't seem to have a phone shortcut yet that I know. So you need to find the phone of your local media as well as where you can send videos-- maybe their social media feed. Keep this information with you. Also, send it to your peers, friends and neighbors. Once you verify an ICE raid, do the following: A) Call the local media. When you do, tell them the exact location, with cross-roads and building references. Also, inform of the day and hour and anything else that is pertinent. For example: ICE has fired, they are entering a business or building, approx. number of agents. B)Keep recording and C) As soon as you can, post the videos on social media and send your videos to the local media.
4. The People's Public Media:  This regime is dismantling public press because they don't want people to know what is happening. In response, a huge wave of communicators, influencers, video channels, blogs, vblogs, podcasts, newsletters and other forms of public communication is rising. I alone have a blog, a YT channel, a substack and a newsletter, and I hate social media! Just imagine. So join the wave! If you have any form of communication, social media account or ways to influence others, this is the time to use them at their maximum power. If you have access to more than 10 people, you may want to create a newsletter where you gather information about what is going on with ICE, the pro-democracy movement focus, events people can join for people power, resources and sharing stories to keep us strong. Just open a free account in SurveyMonkey or any other email management service and send the subscription link to everyone, giving them the option to stay informed with you.  If you can set aside a couple of hours a week to share information via whatever means you have, you are then part of the People's Public Media. Welcome to the power of informational solidarity!

You may be thinking that you don't want to be following the atrocities going on every day because you will be even more overwhelm or depressed. Would it surprise you to learn that it may be the other way around?

In early 2025 I found myself overwhelm and extremely stressed with doom-scrolling about the downpour of destruction that this regime unleashed early on. Finally, I've had enough and decided to take action. And I was surprised when my level of stress went down as my research increased. How could this be happening. I realized that what had changed was that I was no longer doom-scrolling. Instead I was taking FOCUSED ACTION. When I faced a YT news channel, I was engaged as an active responder, not a passive victim. I was studying, analizing, strategizing and then spreading the word to help my community and empower others. As a result, I felt centered, grounded, clear, non-reactive and empowered. The level of stress went from a 9 to a 3!!

Response to ICE

Calls to Action:

1. Please continue to protect the vulnerable in your communities. Make sure they have Red Cards / Tarjetas Rojas from the Immigrant Legal Resource Center informing them of their rights.
2. Report ICE sightings to your local Rapid Response Network (RRN) to ensure the community is alerted and those affected receive legal support. If you don’t have/ don’t know the local RRN, you can submit and track anonymously and locally using the ICE Activity Tracker. (When making a report, be sure to note the specific location — intersections or addresses. If you can, add the number of agents, the types of vehicles, and whether anyone is being detained. Document the activity if it can be done safely from a distance.)
3. Report all ICE activities in your area to your local newspaper, radio, and other local media. Take videos of what ICE is doing — again, doing it safely and from a distance. Share with your local media and ask them to pass it on to their affiliated national broadcast networks.
4. Use Word of Mouth (WOM) to spread the word of ICE’s criminal activities as well as what people can do. Forward emails, like this newsletter. Spread through social media. Call others and let them know what is going on. Write something for your local news. Create a community newsletter. WOM is a tool for People Power!
5. Alert your members of Congress. (Again, to connect directly with the office of you representative or senators, call the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 (or the House direct switchboard at (202) 225-3121). An operator will answer and route your call after you state the name of the lawmaker you wish to reach. Before calling, you can look up your specific representatives using your ZIP code on the House Finder Service or search for your elected officials on Congress.gov.) Yes, I know. They are not listening. But we are not doing this for them. We are recording the will of the people. They have to record calls and emails, so that’s documenting what we demanded from them and proving that they betrayed the will of their constituents. So keep them coming. Also, as the pressure rises and the regime crumbles, the pressure will acquire more power against them, as they see their ship sinking. So they may then take action.
6. Above all, do not be intimidated by ICE and the police state Trump and his assistant Stephen Miller are creating. Its purpose is to intimidate. Remember this: People Power is greater than gun power. We have larger numbers. We hold the national purse. And we have word of mouth and public opinion to defeat them. Use this leverage to make each ICE action backfire!

And finally, some heart-lifting thoughts.

We have a responsibility to one another
and to future generations to resist ICE and its lawlessness
with the same sort of courage and commitment to democracy that Major Jason and the former judges in these People Heroes Stories
are embracing.

People Power is a force of nature.
When we unite and persist in non-compliance, we win.

So let’s do that.

*I shared these stories in my July 2026, issue 1, in my newsletter.
Read it here or subscribe.