The masked bastards at ICE who are using state-sanctioned violence and perceived impunity have federal government backing, a LOT of money, and legal power. Their actions are outrageous, provocative, and harmful.
It’s important to remember that violence or illegal action is not an option this article will consider.
So, what do we do?
Do we just hide and wait them out?
Just hope the abuse doesn’t happen to us?
Let them keep kidnapping and abusing people?
Let them keep sending people without due process wherever the hell they want?
Keep trashing them online and sharing videos of their actions?
Hope that enough people will see it and eventually take their power away via the legal system?
These options don’t appear to meet the moment of crisis we are in with these people, this agency, and the federal government.
Each day that passes, more and more people are hurt. More and more families are torn apart. More and more outrage about their abuses builds.
We’re told that we’re not supposed to just let it run its course.
You know… just take cover, wait, and let the bad guys do the bad things they’ll do until someone else steps in to stop them and hold them accountable.
So, then what?
I’m just a regular American citizen with a family, a home, and a life to protect. I can’t just go out and begin taking down a rogue government agency that most likely has more money and firepower than the militaries of most governments on earth.
I can’t go up to the ICE officers and tell them to stand down.
I can’t go take on the government in any shape or form whatsoever without expecting to be either treated brutally or kidnapped and imprisoned myself… My life ruined by the people with serious weapons and enough arrogance and egotism to believe they’re heroes on a righteous mission to save a nation.
Normally, if a group of people acted like this, we would just rely on the government’s law enforcement and justice system. We’d call up the law enforcement and let them use their state-sanctioned power to squash the criminal activity. But both of those have been corrupted and appear to be doing nothing to stop the violence.
I personally don’t trust interacting with the government if I’m not being forced to because they have been given the authority to remove our bodily autonomy without consequence. Hell, they even occasionally execute people in our streets, our homes, and abroad with impunity.
So… all of my research points to this direction:
You stop violence WITHOUT violence by making violence more costly than it’s worth
Make their violence cost them politically, legally, economically, and socially while protecting people in the moment with de-escalation, accompaniment, and rapid, visible solidarity.
Below is a practical playbook you can use immediately, with the most effective nonviolent tactics, why they work, and the exact, low-resource steps you can take.
Practical playbook (what to do, in order)
1) Immediate protection and de-escalation (hours → days)
Goal: preserve life, reduce immediate harm, and preserve evidence.
Actions:
Move people to safe locations if possible. Prioritize children, elders, and anyone at medical risk.
Use calm language and nonprovocative body language. Short script: “We will not resist. We are calling our lawyer and a legal observer. We want everyone to stay safe.” (Say it calmly, while filming.)
Record safely from a distance; one person films, one person watches for safety, one takes witness contact info. Upload clips to at least two encrypted cloud accounts and hand copies to a trusted NGO/journalist.
Call trained de-escalation volunteers or crisis teams if available; they can speak calmly and redirect tension. Training programs and curricula exist for community de-escalation and should be taken in advance. crisisprevention.com
Why this works: preserving life is primary; de-escalation reduces the chance of force being used and recorded evidence fuels later accountability.
2) Accompaniment and rapid-response visibility (days → weeks)
Goal: make operations politically and morally costly to carry out.
Actions:
Build a small rapid-response node (6–12 people): legal observer(s), live-streamer(s), media contact, drivers, and an intake lead. Use an encrypted phone tree or Signal group for alerts.
Train volunteers on rights, what to film, how to safely accompany people to check-ins or court, and how to document chain of custody for evidence. Groups like the New Sanctuary Coalition run accompaniment trainings you can model; accompaniment has been used successfully to deter deportations and add oversight. New Sanctuary Coalition
Publicize your presence in the neighborhood so agents can’t plausibly claim surprise; visible solidarity raises PR and legal risk for abusive action.
Why this works: persistent public presence changes the cost calculus for those considering coercive action; NGOs and journalists are likelier to respond when a community is organized.
3) Convert incidents into leverage (days → weeks)
Goal: escalate one incident into legal, political, and reputational cost.
Actions:
Centralize all footage, witness statements, timestamps, medical records, and complaint numbers in a secure shared folder and give access to one lawyer/NGO and one journalist.
File immediate complaints with DHS OIG/CRCL and your state/county oversight bodies. Keep confirmation numbers and forward them publicly.
Push a local reporter with a tight hook: “here are three similar incidents in 60 days; you have footage and 5 witnesses.” Local narratives shift policy quickly.
Why this works: a viral/verified story + official complaints force oversight and can trigger FOIAs and court involvement.
4) Target choke points (weeks → months)
Goal: cut the infrastructure that enables violence.
Actions:
Identify one contractor, insurer, or jail that enables the violence (e.g., technology vendor, transport company, or local detention contractor). Run a focused campaign: worker outreach, petitions from customers, public protests at board-meeting times, and targeted letters to major clients/insurers.
Build or support a bond fund to collapse the detention system’s throughput. Even small bonds free people quickly and create immediate stories to press into public debate.
Prepare a civic pressure campaign aimed at the elected official who controls local cooperation (sheriff, county commission): petitions, public records requests, organized turnout at meetings, and voter pledge drives.
Why this works: institutions and elected officials respond when a narrow, sustained cost is applied to a decision they control.
5) Ongoing nonviolent escalation ladder (months → long game)
Goal: sustain pressure until policy changes or contracts end.
Sample ladder:
Public records + complaints + local reporting
Sustained daily/weekly visibility (accompaniment, vigils)
Targeted economic/brand pressure on one contractor
Litigation and FOIA-driven exposures with partner NGOs
Electoral pressure: vow campaigns, candidate support, and turnout operations
Gene Sharp’s taxonomy offers many legally permissible escalation tactics you can choose from; pick a ladder everyone signs onto so the group is disciplined and predictable. wri-irg.org
Concrete, low-resource tools to start today
Encrypted intake form (Google Form + Boxcryptor or Signal link) to collect witness info and upload media.
Binder with local legal contacts, NLG legal observer signup, and your nearest immigrant rights NGO.
One-page rapid-response roles sheet (driver, filmer, legal observer, press contact, social media) and a 24-hour rota.
$25–$100 seed to a local bond fund and a pledge drive to scale it.
Resources/training to seek: legal observer training from the National Lawyers Guild or local mass-defense groups; accompaniment training from New Sanctuary or similar groups; de-escalation courses for community responders.
Scripts (short and usable)
To journalists: “Hi [name], I have verifiable footage and 5 witness contacts from an operation on [date]. We’ve uploaded all media and filed a DHS OIG complaint (confirmation #____). This matches two other incidents in the last 30 days; can I send the folder?”
For accompaniment teams (spoken calmly): “We are here to observe and ensure everyone’s safety. We will remain peaceful and document everything. Please identify yourself and your supervisor and step back while we comply.”
To elected officials: “I’m [name], a constituent. Our community is witnessing repeated coercive ICE actions. Will you publish all agreements with ICE, reveal the county’s records about detainers, and place cooperation with ICE on the next public agenda?”
Safety, ethics, and limits
Nonviolent tactics are powerful but they are not risk-free. They can result in arrests or retaliation — prepare legal observers and bail funds.
Do not cross into doxxing, harassment, or plans for bodily harm. Those actions undermine public support and invite criminal liability.
Nonviolence is not passive; it is strategy. It wins when it’s disciplined, targeted, and combines protection, documentation, and escalation.
Don’t obstruct law enforcement or attempt to physically stop a raid. That risks arrests and undermines public support.
Use trained legal observers to reduce liability; they know how to document without interfering. nlg.org
Keep all actions nonviolent and lawful.
Got any additional advice or ideas? Have steps you’re already taking to legally fight these bastards? Let us know in the comments below so that more people can find the way they can fight back and take meaningful action.