We see you
Why I'm keeping my eyes on America's war on immigrants
Sometimes your social media algorithm actually gets it right. My algorithm knows that I like midwifery- and birth-related accounts. It also knows that, in my downtime, I can spend hours watching reels about French bulldogs, coffee, obscure musical traditions, Gen Z brain rot, and how to find the perfect pair of barrel-leg jeans (I’m still searching). At the turn of the New Year, my algo also figured out that I’m fascinated/horrified by the rise of fascism under the Tr*mp administration, so it started feeding me updates on ICE’s increasingly violent and indiscriminate raids, and then, in a moment of light overlapping dark, it brought me videos by Michael Foote (@dept_of_redundancy_dept on Instagram).
Foote is a New York-based activist and immigration defence lawyer whose often chaotic, off-the-cuff videos chronicle his adventures on the very frontline of America’s war on immigrants. Cycling or striding across the city from one courtroom to the next, Foote’s incisive commentary on the current hellscape is informed, authentic and, yes, even funny. ‘Divaaaa,’ he says of whatever new ways that Tr*mp and his hench-people have managed to trample on the Constitution. ‘Miss Boots. You can’t do that. You’re going to Rikerrrrs.’ I came for the legal commentary and stayed for the slay.
One day, Foote mentioned that he had been working for Acacia Center for Justice, an organisation that funds attorneys for adults and children going through the immigration courts. Foote (anonymously) recounts some of the work he does for unaccompanied minors who have been detained - often for tenuous or completely spurious reasons - and it is horrifying that anyone of any age should have to navigate the judicial system alone. When I looked Acacia up on the web, I saw that they also run a ‘Witness For Justice’ programme, providing court observers who can witness and amplify the horrors of these jumped-up kangaroo courts. For those detainees and defendants who feel completely powerless against the monolith of the Tr*mp administration, Acacia’s witnesses provide proof that they are seen. Volunteers can identify and document violations of due process, promote accountability and amplify defendants’ cases and concerns. The act of witnessing is incredibly powerful: it makes the unseen, seen.
I feel strongly about immigration because it’s literally in my blood. I am an immigrant, as were both of my parents, and all four of their parents were refugees. I have always considered it my duty and privilege to ‘pay forward’ the kindness shown to my forebears by strangers, neighbours and benevolent officials; it’s part of what informs my work as a midwife, and it’s why I’m now a trustee for Amma Birth Companions. This history is also why Acacia’s mission resonates deeply with me, and why I posted about it on my own Instagram account, which led me to a conversation with Acacia’s Director of Development, Lolo Stone.
Lolo told me how powerful it is for Acacia’s clients to know that they are seen, both near (in courts and detention centres) and far (across the country and overseas). Attention to migrant rights flares up in the wake of tragic events like the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, but it soon dwindles as the ever-hungry algorithm moves on. What we see in the media also fails to address the mostly-unreported traumas and deaths of Black and brown people in ICE and DHS custody; Good and Pretti absolutely deserve to be honoured and mourned, but they are not representative of those most frequently and aggressively targeted by the regime.
I asked Lolo how I, a long-time US expat, thousands of miles away, could make a difference for her clients. She told me simply that they need to know that they are seen. Of course, financial, logistical and judicial support is invaluable, but witnessing is powerful and meaningful, too. So, to that end, I’m leaving this here to let anyone caught up in the current American mess that we see you. Even on days when the algo doesn’t feed us your stories, and the headlines move on to some other disaster, we see you and we will not stop doing what we can to raise the alarm about the injustice you’ve suffered.
If you, dear Substacker, feel so inclined, please share this post with or without your own ‘we see you’ note, and please do visit Acacia’s website to find out how else you can help. Donations can be made from abroad, if you feel moved to give. You can also find out more from the ACLU, Human Rights Watch and the Immigration Defense Project. Witnessing and acting don’t have to be mutually exclusive; this is a long game, and we’ve got to be in it from every angle.
love this, of course