Get ICE Out of MN: 30 Accessible Resistance Actions

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Let’s start off crystal clear: ICE needs to get out. Out of MN, and out of this country. Whatever their purpose once was, they are currently an extralegal military organization attacking, kidnapping, and murdering our friends, family, and neighbors. None of us are safe until they are stopped.

The people marching in the streets are sending a very powerful message to the administration. But we can’t all be out there, and even if we could, all of us on the streets would mean other important actions are neglected. Protests get media attention because they’re loud, emotionally swaying, and easily twisted to fit a narrative. We all need to remember that they are only one part of the fight for liberation.

We also need to remember that the disability community is not disconnected from ICE’s actions. First, and most importantly, disabled immigrants exist. Second, let us not forget that we are still in the government’s crosshairs. Staying silent now means there will be fewer people to fight for you when you become a target.

If you’re reading this post, there’s something you can be doing to support the fight. I guarantee it. I know it can feel monumental. The best way to fight that terrifying helplessness is to do something, no matter how small that something feels. If we don’t stand together now, we will all fall separately later.

Before I dive into the meat of things, I also want to encourage you to check out the resources available from Monarca, Unidos, and the Immigrant Defense Network.

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Table of Contents:

1. Knowing your limits and gifts
2. Material
3. Acts of service
4. Social and emotional
5. Creative and educational

Knowing your limits and gifts

The items on this list are specifically not protests or items that require significant bodily resources. Many disabled people have bodily resources to spare, and many are currently doing so. But we all know those actions. So instead, this focuses on four other categories of resources and aid:

1. Material
2. Acts of service
3. Social and emotional
4. Creative and educational

Each of us has a different balance of these resources available to us. Think about your limitations, and what may hold you back from aid in each of these categories. Then think about your strengths: what are you gifted at? What categories do those things fall under? How can you use those gifts to help others?

For example, I’m gifted in the last two categories (hence why I’m writing this post). Bodily and material resources are not things I have in abundance, so rather than being at protests, I’m part of the safety plan of those going to them, and I hold rejuvenating and educational spaces.

You’ll notice that some of these things could probably be put in other categories. You’d be right. There is a lot of overlap, and I am organizing things in a way I think makes sense, but it certainly isn’t perfect.

Some of these ideas may seem shockingly easy to you, while others way too difficult. Remember: none of these actions are categorically small or large. The size of the action depends on the resources it takes to commit it and its effect, not on some universal truth.

Material

1. Donate money to: organizations providing legal defense, community aid groups, unofficial food distribution networks, individuals needing help, etc.
2. Donate food to food drives, pantries, and shelters
3. Offer to pay for food, clothes, or other necessary items for affected friends and neighbors
4. Have spare winter clothes? Donate them to people in need (or loan them to protestors)
5. Collaborate with an organization to help provide supplies for demonstrations
6. Intentionally shop at immigrant-owned businesses and restaurants, and avoid companies supporting ICE, like Amazon, Target, and the Home Depot
7. Have a spare bed or couch? Offer it to someone you know and trust if they need a safe place to be away from home
8. Provide first-aid items, OTC meds, ice packs, and other relief items to those with chronic pain, health conditions, or injuries

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Acts of service

1. Cook food for neighbors, friends, family, or others in need. Food is more than just basic sustenance, it is a nourishment of bodymind and soul
2. Offer to help others get groceries or other essentials so they don’t have to risk leaving home
3. Have a car? Offer to drive people to appointments, work, or anywhere else they might need to go
4. If you think you’re able, offer childcare for families who may need it, or help get them connected to that care
5. Are you multilingual? Provide free translation for demonstration materials, legal information, and more
6. See if you can volunteer with local organizations to help answer phones, pass out resources, etc.

Social and emotional

1. Attend a Know Your Rights training so you can be aware of what you and others should know, say, and do
2. Ask people—especially undocumented folks and those on the front lines—how often you should check in with them, and stick to it
3. Hold wind-down and warm-up spaces (physical or virtual) where folks can take a break, recharge, and have community
4. Offer to be an emergency contact for anyone protesting or at risk of being detained
5. Help others create safety plans for their own activism
6. Create both support and information networks, sharing important updates and resources with others and encouraging them to do the same
7. Help plan demonstrations, mutual aid networks, training sessions, and more
8. Remember to recharge yourself too. You can’t pour from an empty cup, and self-care is resistance when their strategy relies on us being exhausted

Creative and educational

1. Create protest signs and share them with others
2. Distribute zines with information about rights, important things to know, recent events, and more
3. Create art, writing, music, videos, or other media that shares important information and/or promotes hope and healing
4. Volunteer to create graphics, videos, and other materials to help organizations spread the word
5. Host or support community art events, especially those using creation as a way to process and speak out about events
6. Condense difficult information into key ideas and talking points that others can digest
7. Hold conversations where people can ask questions and find out more
8. Make silly little gifts for your loved ones

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Now is the time to put all that rage, fear, and pain to use. And one other important note: give others grace and compassion. If you’re not sure if they’re doing anything to support the movement, ask them. All our contributions look different, but as long as they help even one other person, they’re still contributions.

Do you have other resistance actions to add to this list? I’d love to see it grow! You can leave a comment down below or hold it up on your next protest sign. And if you liked this post, make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the next one.