Freedom for Immigrants stands with Black communities across the United States who have risen up to demand justice and transformation in the face of the continued extrajudicial killing of Black people. We condemn the use of both militarized law enforcement and the military to violently quash dissent. We stand with the call that Black-led organizations and activists have made to #DefundPolice and invest in community-based, anti-violence programs, trauma-informed services, and restorative justice programming.
The history of policing in this country is rooted in slavery, white supremacy and racism, and served as a precursor to mass incarceration and, eventually, immigration detention. Today, these legacies continue, as the cops aggressively confront protesters with immigration agents serving as ground forces alongside them. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has even deployed predator drones to conduct mass surveillance over the public for the police. The presence of DHS agents, embedded alongside local police forces and turning against the people, is a shocking and disturbing sight but it is also part of how these agencies have been working to target and terrorize Black and brown communities for years. We recognize that these various local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies are all part of the same oppressive system of racial violence.
We will never be successful in abolishing detention if we are unwilling to confront policing as well as racism and white supremacy. Freedom for Immigrants is committed to addressing anti-Blackness in the immigrant rights movement, within our network, and inside our organization. We will continue to listen to and uplift organizations with Black and Black-immigrant leadership, provide more education, training, and resources for our members and affiliates, invest in increasing our own knowledge and understanding as an organization, and continue to examine our practices with a critical eye.
Christina Fialho
Co-Founder &
Co-Executive Director
Christina Mansfield
Co-Founder &
Co-Executive Director