How activists are preparing for Border Patrol in New Orleans
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Protesters in Charlotte, N.C., rally against ICE raids and Border Patrol activity. Photo: Peter Zay/Anadolu via Getty Images
As U.S. Border Patrol appears to prepare for a potentially months-long deployment in New Orleans amid President Trump's immigration crackdown, local immigrant rights activists are preparing, too.
Why it matters: The crackdown elsewhere has resulted in sometimes volatile interactions between protesters and federal agents, as well as legal challenges against the federal government.
The big picture: Activists and civil rights organizations responding to DHS' "Operation Midway Blitz" in Chicago set a protest framework by documenting enforcement, organizing demonstrations and filing lawsuits over arrests and the use of tear gas.
- In Charlotte, activists are documenting enforcement, offering legal resources, posting to social media when federal agents are spotted, and sharing do's and don'ts about interacting with them. Some volunteers are spending time at immigrant-owned businesses to show solidarity and potentially deter enforcement.
"What we saw in Chicago was everybody getting together and dropping everything to create systems to keep each other safe, and we expect New Orleanians to do the same here," says Indivisible NOLA chairperson Clare Leavy.
Zoom in: New Orleans immigration activist group Unión Migrante is already sharing sightings of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and suggestions for how to document them. The group has also been organizing "know your rights" trainings.
- Mutual aid groups are amplifying those messages on social media, as well as sharing details on where to find and how to use whistle kits for alerting people to agents' presence.
State of play: Alfredo Salazar, an immigrant activist with Unión Migrante, tells Axios New Orleans that tensions are running high within his community. Some, he says, are planning to stay out of public for as long as they can during any enforcement period.
- One friend, he says, is selling his truck to live off the proceeds for a few months, at least. "They're scared, they're worried, and they're going to hide," Salazar says.
Mayor-elect Helena Moreno, who hasn't spoken with any federal officials about enforcement plans in New Orleans, tells Axios' Carlie Kollath Wells that she is "very concerned about people's due process rights potentially being violated," especially over the possibility of racial profiling.
- Moreno plans for her office to distribute guidance while also calling on local lawyers to volunteer services as well.
The other side: Gov. Jeff Landry said on Fox this week that he welcomes federal law enforcement for illegal immigration.
By the numbers: DHS Secretary Kristi Noem has said Border Patrol detained more 3,000 people in Chicago, though recent reports indicate a majority of the hundreds of people arrested did not have existing criminal records.
- At least 130 people have already been arrested in Charlotte.
- Border Patrol aims to arrest around 5,000 people across Southeast Louisiana and into Mississippi, according to the AP, in a crackdown DHS is reportedly calling "Swamp Sweep."
What we're watching: DHS agents are expected to arrive Friday to begin laying groundwork for the mission, which is due to begin in earnest in early December, the AP reports.
- DHS has yet to confirm the plans.
- But New Orleans Police Department Chief Anne Kirkpatrick is meeting with Border Patrol this week, a department spokesperson says, though "NOPD will simply be assisting and not taking part in the arrests of undocumented or illegal aliens as this is a civil matter and not under the purview of the NOPD."