Hello Kerns Neighborhood Association,
I am contacting you on behalf of Portland Democratic Socialists of America’s Immigrant Justice Working Group.
By now, most of us have seen footage and heard accounts of the shockingly abusive actions of ICE. These include executing warrantless “raids” against entire apartment buildings, dragging all occupants out into the street in the dead of night, including children, ziptied and undressed. (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/
Federal officials are also routinely targeting people for nothing more than their personal appearance or the accents they speak with. These practices are being legally challenged, but the current administration has at least temporarily won a “Shadow Docket” ruling allowing it to engage in blatant racial profiling, never previously sanctioned in law. These have already been infamously dubbed “Kavanaugh stops”, after the justice who authorized them.
Needless to say, these attacks against basic civil rights are NOT popular with the public.
Fortunately, people are taking action to protect their neighbors! And as a Neighborhood Association, you have a vital role to play in these efforts. Here are just a few examples of actions you can take:
Sign onto a public letter stating your opposition to ICE’s unwarranted activities in our neighborhoods. See sample here.
Conduct a “listening session” at your next General Meeting to discuss neighborhood concerns around threats posed by aggressive and illegal tactics being conducted by federal officials.
Help organize “Know Your Rights” trainings for residents and employees of local businesses. See: https://pircoregon.org/
Help distribute signage for local businesses to display warning “ICE not welcome here. No admission without judicial warrant!” (Sample materials available on request.)
Distribute this information in your own communications with residents in your neighborhood.
We’d appreciate having a few minutes at your next meeting to discuss this. We’d like to share important and timely information with you about these and other ways we can all become better prepared to defend ourselves and our neighbors in the face of the uncertain and worrisome conditions our communities are facing.
Thanks in advance,
– G.R. from DSA PDX Immigrant Justice Working Group