Government

How to Support Immigrants In the U.S. During the Coronavirus Pandemic

Here’s how you can help out remotely.
By Palika Makam
Undocumented immigrant Juana 24 from El Salvador and her husband Saul 23 from Honduras watch local news in their oneroom...
John Moore

Infectious diseases and inadequate government response have a long history of disproportionately affecting our most vulnerable and marginalized communities, and COVID-19 is no exception. Six million immigrant workers are at the frontlines every day working hard to keep all of us safe, healthy, and fed during this pandemic. And yet many still don’t have access to new or existing safety nets, and are being left out of relief packages from Congress. The Trump administration has even used this moment to further marginalize immigrant communities by dismantling the asylum system at the U.S.-Mexico border. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol are still arresting and detaining immigrants, deporting family members (which can spread COVID-19 to more countries), and incarcerating adults and children in overcrowded and unsanitary detention centers. Advocates, lawyers, immigration attorneys, judges, and detainees themselves are leading the resistance by calling on the agency to stop enforcements, halt court proceedings, and release vulnerable people and all children from detention.

Below is a list of ways we can amplify these calls to action and support immigrant communities during COVID-19, even while our government is failing to do so. Immigrant communities deserve better from the country they call home.

1. Support the campaign to #FreeThemAll

Even before COVID-19, immigrants in detention faced extreme health risks because of inadequate medical care and unsanitary facilities. ICE’s neglect has previously led to the uncontrolled spread of deadly diseases like mumps and chickenpox, and now immigrants are left to face a global pandemic in overcrowded detention centers and prisons where social distancing is impossible. Just recently we mourned the death of Ramiro Hernandez Ibarra, who died of complications due to septic shock. Ibarra was the 10th person to die in ICE custody in the past six months. In order to protect all of our communities, we have to halt ICE arrests, stop transferring people between facilities, and release all immigrants from detention centers. Here’s how you can support these demands and the campaign to #FreeThemAll:

  • Call airlines and demand that they stop transporting immigrants for ICE.
  • Use this email template to contact members of Congress. To identify your representatives, enter your zip code here. You can also check out this spreadsheet to see what your members of Congress have said so far about ICE’s response to COVID-19.
  • Reach out to your state’s governor using this letter or these call-in script templates.
  • Target your region’s ICE field officer. You can find out who that is, here, and use this letter as a template.
  • Use this form to reach out to your representatives and demand that the Department of Homeland Security open online bond payment options for immigrants in detention so that more people can return home during the pandemic.

For more ideas, including local strategies (like how to contact your mayor or sheriff), see Detention Watch Network’s toolkit.

2. Demand the Supreme Court delays the DACA ruling

The Supreme Court is scheduled to issue a ruling on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) by June 2020. If the Court affirms the Trump administration’s termination of DACA protections, more than 800,000 young immigrants will be in danger of being deported — including thousands of vital health-care workers. It’s crucial that DACA recipients stay protected from deportations and remain able to provide financial and emotional support for themselves and their families right now. Join United We Dream in urging the Supreme Court to delay its final decision.

3. Use your phone to expose ICE abuses

Using your phone to film encounters with ICE can help expose abuses, fight deportations in court, and bring attention to a culture of racist and dehumanizing enforcement that continues to separate families and inflict trauma on immigrant communities in the midst of a global pandemic. WITNESS, where I work as the senior U.S. program coordinator, has already seen how video can be a powerful tool to expose abuses and defend immigrant rights. Keeping our eyes on ICE is even more important now, and possible even while social distancing. Filming might not stop the enforcement in the moment, but it can help fight a case down the line, hold authorities accountable, and help propel immigrant rights to the forefront of national conversation at a time when people are distracted. See the resources below to learn how you can use the camera in your pocket to expose abuses and defend immigrant rights safely, ethically, and effectively.

4. Be careful not to spread misinformation

Social media can be a powerful tool for immigrant communities and allies to organize remotely, learn their rights, and share vital information during COVID-19. Unfortunately, we’ve also seen how misinformation spread online about policies affecting immigrant communities and/or misreporting ICE raids can escalate fear and uncertainty within an already vulnerable community. Oftentimes misinformation is spread by those with the best intentions, but the impact can be dire. Allies and directly impacted communities can combat misinformation and help spread power instead of paranoia. Before you reshare a post, take a second and look to the resources below to guide you:

5. Know your rights

One of the most powerful and evergreen ways to fight for immigrant rights is to know, understand, and practice your rights. We all have rights guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution, regardless of our immigration status. Read and share the resources below to learn what your rights are:

  • See these resources from the ACLU about what your rights are in different scenarios with ICE or law enforcement.
  • Watch these short animations from Brooklyn Defender Services and the ACLU about what your rights are if ICE stops you on the street, shows up at your door, or a loved one is arrested.
  • The Immigrant Defense Project offers a multitude of resources, toolkits, infographics, and even a poster you can hang by your door to remind you of your rights if ICE shows up.
  • Learn Your Power with these resources from United We Dream., and check out its COVID-19-specific resources for immigrant communities.
  • Check out these COVID-19-specific Know Your Rights resources from Make the Road New York.
  • For immigrant survivors of gender-based violence, many of whom are living with the effects of trauma or coping with ongoing abuse, this is an especially difficult time. Visit the Tahirih Justice Center for information about legal services for immigrant survivors of gender-based violence.

6. Volunteer remotely with an immigrant rights organization

Many immigrant rights organizations are transitioning their volunteer programs online and need volunteers who can help while remote. See below for ideas on how you can support:

  • Volunteer remotely as an attorney, law student, or bilingual translator for Al Otro Lado and help protect asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border.

  • Volunteer with New Sanctuary Coalition to support a range of activities from rapid response, data entry and management, graphic design, and more.

  • Organizations are also in need of translators and interpreters, and contrary to mainstream narratives, immigrants speak a variety of languages, not just Spanish. Lending language skills to translate documents and resources, do court translation, et cetera, are critical ways to help immigrants access justice. Check out language volunteer opportunities with:

  • The Advocates for Human Rights

  • #StandwithImmigrants

  • Tarjimly

7. Defund systems of oppression

We often think the best way to use our money for good is to donate, but it can be just as effective to take our money out of systems of oppression. In addition to how we spend our own money, we also want our tax dollars used to strengthen our communities by investing in education, housing, and health-care programs, not to bankroll xenophobic policies. This is especially important during a public health crisis. Learn more about the campaign to demand that Congress defunds hate against immigrant communities.

8. Fund immigrant rights

If you are in a position to contribute financially, here are some places where your donations will go a long way:

Want more from Teen Vogue? Check this out: The History of Earth Day: From Radical Roots to Elementary School Classrooms

Stay up-to-date on the 2020 election. Sign up for the Teen Vogue Take!