Movimiento Cosecha and GR Rapid Response to ICE organized to resist ICE terrorism in Grand Rapids

On Thursday, several national immigration justice groups, like the Acacia Center for Justice, sent out the following messages to local and state organizations, along with Rapid Response to ICE groups that are popping up all over the country.

We are reaching out to share deeply concerning information we’ve just received. Beginning tomorrow, ICE will launch an operation reportedly named “Freaky Friday,” targeting unaccompanied children aged 14 and older of all nationalities.

What we’ve learned – Children detained and released will be sent a “threat” letter from ICE threatening indefinite detention and immediate transfer to ICE upon age-out if they do not waive jurisdiction under the TVPRA and withdraw applications for relief.

Children will be offered $2,500 to return to their countries of origin. If children do not comply with the “offer”, the letter intimates their parents in the US will be arrested.

ICE plans to detain all age-outs, and they anticipate legal challenges. There are indications that the age threshold for this threat letter may be lowered to 10 years old.

We understand they plan to first target detained children but will also target children released from custody.

This message was also verified by numerous independent groups like the National Immigration Justice Center and media sources, like The Intercept.

In Grand Rapids, Movimiento Cosecha and GR Rapid Response to ICE circulated information in both Spanish and English to prepare people for possible increased ICE activities, without unnecessarily creating a panic.

In addition, these groups posted the What to Do If ICE Shows Up cards, which are also in Spanish and English.

However, besides sharing these resources, Movimiento Cosecha and GR Rapid Response mobilized several teams to patrol in neighborhoods where schools are located, both in the early morning and again around the time that students would be getting out of school.

The teams that were deployed saw very little ICE activity and it is difficult to know if they were a deterrent or not. What we do know is that parents of students and residents that live near the schools were delighted that there were patrols to keep ICE out. Several of the people who were out on patrols were wearing Chinga La Migra shirts, shirts which translate to “Fuck ICE.” This message made those doing patrols more approachable to residents who are at risk of ICE kidnappings. Those on patrol were also distributing hard copies of the What to Do If ICE Shows Up cards.

Movimiento Cosecha also made several videos, like this one, to also communicate clear messages to members of the affected community, so has to not promote panic, but to promote organized resistance.

Indeed, this type of organized resistance is critical when dealing with ICE agents who are growing in numbers with additional federal funding and who have been given free reign by the Trump Administration to go after anyone, especially those who “look like immigrants” – which means this is clearly a form of racial profiling.

As someone who is part of GR Rapid Response to ICE, I highly recommend that people get trained and join this resistance work, which is right now the best way to practice solidarity with the immigrant community. Also, follow Movimiento Cosecha and GR Rapids Response to ICE on social media. It is time that we move beyond merely protesting ICE repression and start resisting ICE terrorism. Our liberation is directly linked to the liberation of those most targeted by oppression.