Safety in Solidarity

then they came for us

Jun 12, 2025

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What is happening in LA and in cities around the country - ICE raids at home depot schools, street corners, car washes, bus stations - isn’t about security. It’s about control. Its about removing (kidnapping and disappearing) people who don’t fit a certain idea of what America is.

This is a long-standing American tradition. Disappearing people who don’t “fit” into the white able-bodied cis/straight male image has been taking place since our inception - as old as the colonial genocide of Indigenous peoples and as recent as the violent raids and mass deportations of today.

Ice is not enforcing law and order. They are enforcing a vision of who belongs to the white American project and who doesn’t. But as Martin Neimoller reminded us:

First they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist
Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist
Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew
Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me

The only safety for any of us is in solidarity. If you want society to be better for your child, you have to work to make society better for every child…that includes the undocumented child, the trans child and the Palestinian child…every child. We build solidarity by practicing the kind of radical love that is based in abundance vs zero sum and the idea that none of us are well unless all of us are well.

Kerri (she/her)

Artwork by @patrick_martinez_studio

NTK (need to know)

Fascism Barometer: In this urgent episode of The Fascism Barometer, host Ejeris Dixon sits down with renowned activist and organizer Linda Sarsour for a powerful conversation on fascism, Palestinian liberation, and the meaning of true solidarity.
The Abundance Debate Is Broken. Here’s How to Fix It. Populists and abundance proponents have retreated into factional warfare. But both sides need to realize that they need each other.
Timely lessons for keeping people safe in the streets. As Trump looks to increase repression, a new training guide explains how peacekeepers reduce fear and build solidarity.
The Los Angeles Protests Are an Act of Self-Defense. Residents of L.A. aren’t merely protesting ICE; they’re attempting to protect their communities from ICE’s raids.
Unpacking Trump’s Order Authorizing Domestic Deployment of the Military. The president’s move represents an unprecedented, dangerous, and legally doubtful exercise of power. What to know about troops deployment, martial law and The Insurrection Act.

PRACTICING SOLIDARITY

JOIN LOCAL RAPID RESPONSE NETWORKS: Rapid response networks respond to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detentions and raids in our communities. Many counties have a local rapid response hotline available 24/7. Find your local rapid response network HERE.

FIGHT DISINFORMATION. How to avoid common myths about immigration and best practices for interrupting the narrative cycle of dehumanization and deportation.

ICE WATCH: if you’re not at risk of deportation, you can respond, report, document ICE raids for our neighbors to disrupt illegal activity and protect our neighbors. Here are some resources to skill up.

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS: Understanding the law and our constitutional rights is essential to ensuring fair and dignified treatment, preventing exploitation and protecting our communities. The ACLU has put together a thorough resource for getting informed and engaged in defending our rights and each other.

PROTEST: ICE protests are spreading around the country in solidarity with the undocumented community. And June 14th is the “No Kings” national day of action schedule in opposition to Trump’s birthday military parade. Find a protest near you.

FOLLOW THE PEOPLE WHO KNOW THE WAY: Solidarity starts with centering the those who are most impacted and listening for what is needed (versus assuming we know, getting in the way of leadership, trying to be the hero). Here are some folks/organizations leading the way:

Art by @562.arts

DIGGING DEEPER

There is room in the movement for all of us. Responding to this moment requires a diversity of tactics and strategies that recognize that many ways we can show up to resist, protect and support each other. Mutual aid is how we take care of each other and build alternative structures outside the state to ensure people have what they need to survive/thrive. It is rooted in abolition and the idea that there is enough to go around and we get free through community solidarity and each other.

Mutual aid is the accumulation of many small, fractal acts of relationship and generosity. And at a time when it is extremely dangerous for undocumented people to be doing everyday activities in public, those of us who have the privilege of citizenship can show up in essential ways. Here are some suggestions for how you can show up in little and big ways for the community:

Offer to run errands (pick up meals, groceries, supplies, etc)
Offer to drop off and pick up kids from school
Accompany neighbors to court appointments and immigration check ins
Report ICE sightings to rapid response networks
Join your rapid response network or ICE WATCH street team
Protect day laborers by Adopting a Day Laborer Corner
Donate to your local mutual aid network
Donate to legal defense and bail funds
Donate to immigrant led organizations

Note: Mutual aid is rooted in relationship and trust. If those relationships do not already exist, it is strongly recommended that you find a mutual aid network near you that is already doing the work and support through them.

Image by @votingshoes

WE-NESS

If you’re unclear about how to show up in this moment, ask your self “what do I love that is at stake?”…and then with everything you’ve got, protect what you love.