Immigrants are often at the mercy of unannounced ICE raids — many conducted illegally and callously. This human rights group is hoping to swing the balance of power, by encouraging video justice.
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00:00Do not resist. Do not resist.
00:02Let me pull my phone.
00:03Get right along.
00:04I need to hang up.
00:05There's a reason why ICE enforcement usually happens in the middle of the night or early morning.
00:11There's a reason why ICE agents show up to courthouses in plain clothing or only wearing police vests.
00:30So what most people don't know is that in the United States you have a First Amendment constitutional right
00:44to document law enforcement, including immigration enforcement, in public spaces.
00:49This is regardless of your immigration status.
00:51Focus your camera on law enforcement or the agent, not on the people you're hoping to protect.
01:00We want to be able to use our cameras to expose ICE abuse and Border Patrol abuse,
01:05not to put our own communities at further risk of harm or retaliation.
01:09One of the most simple things you can do to protect your safety and your footage, which is valuable,
01:14is to have at least a six-digit passcode on your phone.
01:18So not the finger, touch ID, not the face ID, not the pattern lock.
01:26Street signs, badge numbers, license plates, uniforms or lack thereof.
01:31These kind of details both help verify the content and tell the story of what was happening.
01:41Don't narrate. Stay quiet. Let the footage speak for itself.
01:45Also, anything learned about the person being arrested during the arrest can be used against them in court.
01:50That's why you never want to allege anything about their criminal status, their immigration status, their country of origin.
02:01So if you have filmed something, before you share, pause, take a deep breath.
02:06For example, in cases like this, timing can be really crucial.
02:11Actually waiting until ICE or Border Patrol or law enforcement puts out an official statement and then releasing your footage
02:18can be a really powerful way of showing discrepancies or any lies that they might have produced through their statement.
02:30It's even more important now that not just people who are at threat of deportation,
02:34but their neighbors, their allies, their community members are also prepared to document these abuses and fight for their communities.