If you’ve been following recent reports of immigration enforcement actions and wondered how you can respond, this post is for you. The Constitution doesn’t just protect our rights—it empowers us to use them. And here in Philadelphia, we’ve got a long tradition of standing up for what’s right.
This isn’t about breaking laws. It’s about exercising the fundamental rights that define American democracy—your freedom to speak, to assemble, to witness, to support your neighbors, and to demand accountability from elected officials. From documenting potential rights violations to contacting your representatives, from supporting legal defense to simply offering a neighbor a ride, civic engagement takes many forms. Each action, no matter how small, strengthens our communities and upholds the values of due process, human dignity, and equal justice under law.
Here’s how you can get involved right here in Philly:
1. Know your rights and share them
Understanding legal protections helps everyone stay safer. In Pennsylvania, ICE can’t just walk into someone’s home—they need a judicial warrant, signed by a judge, to enter a private home without permission. An administrative warrant isn’t enough. Some people post multilingual signs on their doors stating: “I do not consent to your entry without a judicial warrant.” You can help neighbors understand they don’t have to open the door or answer questions.
Organizations like the ACLU of Pennsylvania and Juntos offer “Know Your Rights” cards in multiple languages that people can carry and show to officers instead of speaking. Juntos regularly holds Know Your Rights workshops. The Pennsylvania Immigration Coalition (PIC) also provides resources and training. You can attend one yourself, then share what you learned at a community meeting, neighborhood gathering, or through your faith community.
2. Serve as an emergency contact
Detention can happen suddenly, leaving children stranded at school or pets alone at home. Offer to be listed on school pickup forms as an authorized adult. As a designated caregiver, you could immediately pick up the child, provide care, and contact family members, avoiding placement in the foster care system. Work with your neighbor to create a safety plan that includes where important documents are kept (birth certificates, lease agreements), how to access their home if needed, and contact information for family members. Some families create a “go-bag” with essential items and instructions that you might store or know how to access.
3. Be a trusted witness and document interactions
Safe documentation can provide vital evidence for legal cases. If you see immigration enforcement activity in your neighborhood, film from a safe distance and on public property—without interfering. Record details like date, time, location, number of officers, vehicle license plates, and badge numbers. Note whether officers showed warrants and whether people consented to searches.
You can then share this information directly with trusted legal organizations, including Aldea – The People’s Justice Center, HIAS Pennsylvania, or Nationalities Service Center (NSC). These organizations may use documented evidence to challenge unlawful arrests or enforcement actions. In prior cases, video and other documentation have helped establish that officers entered homes without valid warrants or made arrests without probable cause.
Never put yourself in danger. Your role is to observe, not intervene physically or verbally.
4. Support legal defense funds
Legal representation dramatically affects case outcomes—studies show that immigrants with attorneys are five to ten times more likely to win their cases than those without. Many organizations need funds for bond payments to get people released from detention—bonds can range from $1,500 to $25,000. You can organize a fundraiser in your community, set up recurring monthly donations, or contribute to specific emergency response funds. Even small monthly contributions of $5 to $20 add up when many people participate.
Here in Philadelphia, several organizations desperately need funding:
- HIAS Pennsylvania provides immigration legal services, resettlement assistance, and citizenship classes
- Nationalities Service Center offers comprehensive immigration legal services
- Aldea – The People’s Justice Center focuses on Latin American immigrant communities
- Juntos provides community organizing and legal support
- Justice at Work Pennsylvania offers free legal assistance for low-wage and immigrant workers.
- Equal Access Legal Services provides market rate legal services.
- Migrance Initiative Inc. provides a variety of immigration support services.
- The Welcoming Center supports economic integration of immigrants through employment, information, and referral services.
- New Sanctuary Movement of Philadelphia is an advocacy and community coalition working to protect immigrant rights and build solidarity.
- Pennsylvania Immigration Coalition is a coalition of groups working on policy, advocacy, and community support; engages in broader immigrant rights efforts.
- Community Legal Services Inc. provides legal assistance related to housing, benefits, and immigration-adjacent services.
- Philadelphia Legal Assistance provides general civil legal aid that may support immigrant families.
5. Accompany people to appointments
Having a U.S. citizen present as a witness can sometimes change how interactions unfold and provide emotional support during stressful situations. Offer to accompany neighbors to ICE check-ins at the Philadelphia Field Office, immigration court hearings, or consular appointments.
Your role is typically to wait outside, observe the process, take notes on what happens, and be ready to contact their attorney if they’re detained. Some people form “accompaniment teams” through congregations like POWER (Philadelphians Organized to Witness, Empower and Rebuild) or the New Sanctuary Movement of Philadelphia. Both provide trained volunteers who understand the process.
6. Create community alert networks
Rapid communication can help people make informed safety decisions. Help establish a text chain, WhatsApp group, or phone tree where trusted community members share verified information about immigration enforcement activity in your neighborhood—whether that’s in Northeast Philly, Olney, or South Philly.
Connect your network with Juntos, which documents and analyzes immigration enforcement activity in Philadelphia, or with the Pennsylvania Immigration Coalition, which tracks similar activity statewide. When reports indicate ICE presence near a specific SEPTA station, school, or other routine location, families can proactively adjust travel routes, modify pickup arrangements, or delay nonessential movement to reduce the risk of unexpected encounters.
7. Provide practical assistance
Everyday tasks can carry risks for undocumented people. Offer to drive neighbors to appointments, since traffic stops can lead to questioning. If you speak English and your neighbor doesn’t, offer interpretation help for medical appointments, parent-teacher conferences, or interactions with landlords.
Share resources like Philabundance food pantries, Health Federation of Philadelphia clinics that serve everyone regardless of status, or Puentes de Salud, which provides healthcare to the Latinx community in South Philly. You can also help your neighbors access public benefits like school lunch programs or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
8. Call your elected officials and don’t stop till you get real answers
This is where your power as a voter really matters. Philadelphia’s Executive Order 5-16 limits city cooperation with ICE detainer requests to only cases involving a violent first- or second-degree felony. The protection exists on paper, but it has meaning only to the extent that city leadership actively enforces it.
Here’s what you can do:
Find your city council member at phlcouncil.com and demand they enforce Executive Order 5-16. Ask them directly: “What are you doing to ensure our police aren’t cooperating with ICE beyond what the executive order allows?”
In surrounding counties, call your county commissioners:
- Delaware County: (610) 891-4000
- Montgomery County: (610) 278-3000
- Chester County: (610) 344-6100
- Bucks County: (215) 348-6000
Ask whether your county jail honors ICE detainers without judicial warrants and what agreements your sheriff has with ICE.
Find your state representative and senator at palegis.us and call them about sanctuary policies. If you see local agencies assisting ICE without proper legal authority, file Right-to-Know requests through your county’s website within 30 days and contact Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner’s office at (215) 686-8000.
Vote in Pennsylvania’s May primaries and November general elections—races for sheriff, district attorney, and county commissioner directly affect immigration enforcement. Write letters to the Philadelphia Inquirer at letters@inquirer.com and to neighborhood papers like the Chestnut Hill Local or West Philly Local.
Contact your representatives:
U.S. SENATORS (Pennsylvania)
- Senator John Fetterman (D) — Washington, D.C.: (202) 224-4254; Philadelphia office: (215) 241-1090.
- Senator David McCormick (R) — Washington, D.C.: (202) 224-6324; Philadelphia office: (215) 405-9660.
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES (covering Philadelphia)
- Congressional District 2 — Representative Brendan Boyle (D) — Washington, D.C.: (202) 225-6111; Philadelphia district office: (215) 426-4616.
- Congressional District 3 — Representative Dwight Evans (D) — Washington, D.C.: (202) 225-4001; Philadelphia district office: (215) 276-0340.
- Congressional District 5 — Representative Mary Gay Scanlon (D) — Washington, D.C.: (202) 225-2011; Chester/area office: (610) 626-2020.
9. Reduce harm from misinformation and fraud
Actively counter false or misleading immigration information in your community. Immigration-related scams are common in Philadelphia, particularly involving “notarios” or self-described “immigration consultants” who are not licensed or accredited. Help neighbors understand that only licensed attorneys and Board of Immigration Appeals–accredited representatives are authorized to provide immigration legal services. Encourage verification of credentials before any payment or document submission. Share accurate, plain-language information about common scam tactics, including promises of “guaranteed” outcomes, pressure to pay in cash, or requests to sign blank forms. Reporting patterns of fraud to trusted legal aid organizations helps prevent broader community harm.
10. Offer employment ethically
If you hire household help, workers for your business, or contract services, do so ethically. Pay at least minimum wage (currently $7.25/hour in Pennsylvania, though many advocate it should be higher), and provide safe working conditions.
Support immigrant-owned businesses throughout Philadelphia—from the Indonesian restaurants in Olney to the Mexican taquerías in South Philly to the Vietnamese shops in West Philly. Treat undocumented workers with the same dignity and legal labor protections that any worker deserves.
Each of these actions is an exercise of your constitutional rights and democratic participation. None of this interferes with the law—it’s about understanding how the law works and making sure it’s applied correctly and consistently.
History shows us that ordinary people doing ordinary things—offering a ride, making a phone call, showing up as a witness—can shift the course of injustice. You don’t need to be a lawyer or an activist to make a difference. You just need to be a neighbor.
And when enough Philadelphians stand together, insisting that our laws be applied fairly and our communities remain whole, real change becomes possible. That’s not naive optimism. That’s how democracy works. And it’s how this city has always worked: neighbor helping neighbor, community by community, block by block.
Want something to share?
Use this link to download a one-page handout you can print or post in community spaces like coffee shops, libraries, or community centers. It’s available in both English and Spanish.
The post You Are Not Powerless: How Philadelphians Can Help Their Neighbors appeared first on Solow, Hartnett and Galvan Immigration Law.