You Don’t Have to Be on the Front Lines to Fight Back

The images out of Los Angeles are hard to watch: armored vehicles rolling down city streets, immigration raids targeting entire neighborhoods, and families — some with U.S. citizen children — being torn apart in full daylight. If the latest reports are to be believed, there will be Marines in the streets of Los Angeles by morning. It feels dystopian because it is.

But this is not a call to run into the streets and risk arrest. Not everyone can protest. Not everyone should have to. This is a call for the rest of us, the introverts, the supporters, the “I-want-to-help-but-how?” crowd, to get off the sidelines and into action. There is plenty you can do, right now, that doesn’t require a gas mask or a lawyer on speed dial.

Turn Up the Political Pressure

No matter where you live, your local officials have power. Governors can limit ICE cooperation. City councils can declare sanctuary policies. Police departments can choose not to assist in raids. Call them. Email them. Show up to public comment. Make your voice impossible to ignore.

👉 Not sure who your representatives are? Find out here: https://commoncause.org/find-your-representative

Back the Bail Funds and Legal Defenders

If you’ve got a credit card and a conscience, you can help. Immigrant bail funds, legal defense organizations, and grassroots aid groups are on the ground doing what many of us can’t — keeping families together, challenging illegal detentions, and getting people out of cages. Donate what you can. Then tell ten friends to do the same.

Recommended:

- RAICES Texas

- Al Otro Lado

- The National Bail Fund Network

Volunteer Without Marching

You can contribute from your laptop or living room. Migrant aid groups need remote volunteers: translators, document processors, drivers, fundraisers, graphic designers, social media help. You don’t need law school — just compassion and a bit of time.

(Full list of opportunities at the end of this article.)

Know Your Rights. Share Them.

Many undocumented immigrants still don’t know their rights. You can help change that. Organizations like the ACLU and United We Dream provide multilingual “Know Your Rights” toolkits.

One powerful resource is the “Red Card”, a small handout immigrants can show to ICE agents to assert their legal rights: https://ilrc.org/red-cards

Support, Don’t Spectate

Think beyond social media. Is your neighbor undocumented? Check in. Is your local church or temple a sanctuary congregation? Ask how you can help. Is your workplace silent on ICE raids? Ask why.

Solidarity isn’t performative. It’s proactive.

Stop the Spread of Disinformation

ICE claims it’s targeting “violent criminals,” but raid patterns tell a different story — one that includes garment workers, day laborers, and families. Speak up when you hear the lies. Share facts. If you’re online, be strategic: report fearmongering, amplify first-hand accounts, and counter the narrative that terror in the streets is “normal.”

Vote Like It Matters. Because It Does.

Local elections can shape federal outcomes. Sheriffs, city councils, school boards — these are the people who either collaborate with ICE or resist it. If you’re angry, vote. If you’re outraged, help register others.

Protect Protestors. Quietly.

If you can’t be on the streets, help those who are: offer water, rides, or even WiFi for organizing. Open your home as a safe space. Or help fund their legal defense. Think of yourself as logistical support — not everyone holds the megaphone, but without the team behind them, it doesn’t work.

The truth is, America has been here before. We’ve used fear to justify cruelty. We’ve normalized state violence in the name of order. But we also know how these stories end — or at least, how they can end — when enough people decide enough is enough.

So no, you don’t have to be a hero. But you do have to act. Because silence — however well-meaning — is the system’s favorite ally.

📌 Volunteer Matching Resources

Want to do more than repost hashtags? Start here:

- The Immigration Project

- Border Angels

- Al Otro Lado

- Amica Center for Immigrant Rights

- Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA)