NYC Democratic Socialists Plan Training of 4,000 Activists for ICE ‘Rapid Response’ Actions
Jan 18
Developing
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New York City’s chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America is organizing what it calls a large rapid‑response network to federal immigration enforcement, with leaders telling attendees at a recent meeting they aim to train roughly 4,000 volunteers to monitor and, in some cases, disrupt ICE operations across the city, according to the New York Post account cited by Fox. A DSA organizer identified only as “Marina” said similar tactics have previously helped deter ICE detentions in New York and pointed to ongoing protests in Minnesota — including whistle alerts, crowd mobilization and confrontations outside federal buildings — as a model. The planned tactics include using whistles and other noisemakers to broadcast ICE activity and draw activists into the streets in real time, essentially standing up a civilian alert system parallel to DHS operations. The organizing push comes as Minnesota has seen mass protests and federal use of tear gas after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good, and as President Trump has publicly threatened, then downplayed for now, use of the Insurrection Act and placed the Army’s 11th Airborne Division on prepare‑to‑deploy orders for Minnesota. DHS declined comment to Fox, but the episode underscores how street‑level resistance to immigration raids in one Midwestern city is being consciously exported to New York, potentially setting up sharper clashes between federal agents and organized networks of activists in multiple jurisdictions.
Immigration & Demographic Change
ICE Raids and Protest Response
New York City Politics