Rights Groups Rally Against ICE at Immigration Courts in San Francisco, Sacramento
- CCIJ
- May 28
- 6 min read
Media Contacts:
San Francisco
Alex Mensing, California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice, alex@ccijustice.org, 415.684.5463
Kimberly Galindo, Contra Costa Immigrant Rights Alliance, kimberly@cocoira.org, 818.268.1413
Sanika Mahajan, Mission Action and San Francisco Rapid Response Network, sanika.mahajan@missionaction.org, 408.637.9804
Sacramento
Kamalpreet Chohan, California Immigration Project, kchohan@calimm.org, 916.241.3002
May 28, 2025
For Immediate Release
Immigrant Justice Groups Rally in San Francisco, Sacramento to Protest ICE Operations at Immigration Courts and Defend Immigrants, Due Process
Link for photo, video and audio files available for media to use:
San Francisco, CA – Over 100 people in San Francisco and dozens of community members in Sacramento attended simultaneous press conferences to protest recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations at immigration courts in Northern California and around the country. In the past week, ICE escalated its fear mongering campaign against noncitizens by conducting operations and arrests inside immigration court buildings, where people go to pursue their legal immigration proceedings. These operations, along with misleading messaging by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), are an attempt to bypass the legal system, undermining due process for everyone.
In San Francisco, community members, attorneys, organizers and others gathered at the corner near 100 Montgomery Street, the location of the San Francisco Immigration Court, where five people have been arrested and detained by ICE in the past week. Holding signs that read “Hands Off Immigrants,” “End the Deportations and Abductions,” and “Defend Due Process,” speakers committed to defending immigrant communities and gave out red “know your rights” cards.
In Sacramento, over 40 people, including organizers, attorneys, elected officials, community members, and others gathered in front of the Sacramento Immigration Court at 650 Capitol Mall. ICE agents have conducted operations at the Court over the last week, and arrested three asylum seekers who were attending their court hearing on Tuesday May 27. People held signs that read “End The Disappearances!" “Due Process for All” and "Anti-Family Separation.” The Sacramento FUEL Network and the Sacramento Attorney of the Day Program gave out resources.
You can find a list of Rapid Response Networks in California at https://www.ccijustice.org/carrn
Quotes from spokespeople below:
In San Francisco
“We’re here as part of a united front of immigrant justice organizations and other community groups, to say that we refuse to support this coordinated campaign of terror,” said Sanika Mahajan, Director of Community Engagement & Organizing at Mission Action, member of SF Rapid Response Network. “We refuse to be intimidated. We will stand up and fight back, and will be here to defend our immigrant communities and make sure they have access to due process, day in and day out. They want to divide us up but we will stand united. This is a fight for all workers against the billionaires that profit off of deporting and repressing us.”
“Your right to go to court, to share your story with a judge, to present evidence. These are basic and critical Constitutional rights. These are cornerstones of our democracy. And we are here today to sound the alarm that these fundamental rights are under attack by the Trump regime.” said Mano Raju, the elected Public Defender for San Francisco. “To my fellow local and state elected leaders, I ask that you support the work of rapid response networks, immigration legal services, and our immigration unit by investing more funding in this critical infrastructure. I ask that you also call out the Trump administration and ICE for their scare tactics and loudly reject them.”
“We are not going to stand by and let authoritarianism take over our country. We have the power to fight for the tired, the poor, and the huddled masses yearning to be free,” said Milli Atkinson, Director of the Immigrant Legal Defense Program of the Justice & Diversity Center of the Bar Association of San Francisco. “To the advocates here today, you have the power every day to stand up for justice and to be on the right side of history.”
“We want to remind people that they have the right to oppose any attempt by the government to dismiss their case. They have the right to talk to a volunteer lawyer for advice, and they have the right to ask for help from a volunteer if ICE is trying to arrest them.” said Lisa Knox, Legal Director and Co-Executive Director of the California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice. “It takes all of us to show up for our community and neighbors. They’re starting with immigrants, but they’re not going to end there. We need to show that we are not going to take it.”
What we’re seeing in courts across the country, including here in San Francisco, is a fear tactic, plain and simple,” said Luna Osleger-Montañez of the We Fight Back Coalition. “The legal measures for immigrants in our country are actually really meager. They’re not sufficient, and all of them were won by the organizing and struggle of people who came before us. Even those meager rights that we have now, the right wing and the billionaire class of this country are trying to take those away.”
“We all know that ICE camping outside of immigration court is a menace to public safety,” said Fernando Antunez, Social Worker at Legal Services for Children and FREE SF member. “We say ‘NO’ to any and all collusion between local law enforcement and federal immigration officials. District Attorney Jenkins: stop colluding with federal immigration.”
“We need to say ‘NO’ to the Dublin detention center,” said Iris Barrera, Field Director at TUWU (Trabajadores Unidos Workers United), in reference to ICE’s plans to detain immigrants at the former FCI Dublin women’s prison in Dublin, California, “which was shut down just last year in April through organizing and mobilizing. If they succeed in re-opening this facility, it would be the biggest detention center in Northern California. This isn’t just about Dublin, this is about the working class across Northern California.”
In Sacramento
“We are here to address a deeply concerning pattern of actions by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that undermines the constitutional right to due process and attempts to intimidate individuals navigating the system.” said Jessie Mabry, CEO of Opening Doors. “This latest tactic of detaining immigrants at immigration courts immediately after attempting to unilaterally dismiss their case, including any applications they have filed is a new low.”
“This coordinated response spanning all three immigration courts in Northern California underscores the urgency felt throughout our region. Together, we are sending a clear message: we will not allow intimidation, deceptive tactics, or the abuse of enforcement power to replace justice and due process.” said Marcus Tang, Executive Director of California Immigration Project. “These appalling tactics weaponize the legal process and turn our courts where people go to follow the law into traps.”
“Keeping Sacramento families together is, at its core, a human rights issue, and one we must all stand up for. Sanctuary policies are legal and ensure safety for all. When families are torn apart, it's not a policy failure, it's human failure.” said Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang. “I will never stop fighting for our immigrant and refugee families and will continue to stand up for all working people in this city.”
“Three men who followed the rules and attended their hearings as scheduled, two of them asylum seekers who filed their forms on time as instructed are now detained at Golden State Annex in McFarland, CA, far from family and community support here in Sacramento.” said Jessie DeHaven, Volunteer Attorney with the Sacramento Attorney of the Day Program. “When individuals in immigration proceedings fear going to court, this undermines the right to due process for everyone. We must stand in solidarity with asylum seekers and other non-citizens. If we allow the government to take away people’s right to due process, we are all at risk.
“We are here to let the government and its actors acting in bad faith who have chosen to target immigrants that we as a collective have chosen to stand by and protect our neighbors outside the courtroom and anywhere this fight takes us.” said Giselle Garcia, Volunteer with NorCal Resist.
“As of Tuesday, May 27, we are aware of at least three arrests made by ICE at the Sacramento Immigration Court. These arrests were made in a public space inside the courthouse and have been witnessed by the arrestee's family members and other individuals in removal proceedings. This practice is clearly meant to evoke fear and panic in our community. And this isn’t just happening here, it's part of a national trend.” said Kamalpreet Chohan, Coordinator of the Sacramento Attorney of the Day Program housed at the California Immigration Project. “This system is designed to isolate people. But we are here to remind each other: we’re not in this alone. We are stronger, and safer, when we show up for one another. Let us respond not with fear, but with collective action.”
“FUEL partners, community members, and volunteer attorneys are on the frontlines advocating for and protecting our neighbors, family members, and friends. Our community partners are moving mountains day in and day out, powered by love but with very limited resources. We cannot do this alone.” said Claudia Rios Manzo, Program Coordinator of the Sacramento FUEL Network. “Our undocumented community, without a vote, has rallied countless times and garnered support in your names. Many of your platforms were built on the backs of their stories. Now is the time to act on and fulfill those promises. This fight for justice needs your support and allyship.”
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