Action 196. ICE is coming!
Background: Several sources have suggested today that ICE plans to visit Maine very soon, like in the next week or so, sending in several hundred agents the way they did in Minnesota. Immigrant communities such as in Lewiston need to be taking precautions in case the raids come.
Check out this source: https://www.aclumaine.org/preparingforice/
And read Shay Stewart-Bouley’s post https://shaystewartbouley.substack.com/p/coldest-ice-nah-it-will-probably where she says: “I say this as someone in Portland, Maine, area, where ICE is expected to arrive in force very soon (I guess they wanted their matched pair of coastal Portlands to terrorize after messing around in Oregon). Supposedly, they will be here “only” a week, but I’ll believe it when I see it.”
Action: Do what you can to help, and stay safe. Do not under any circumstances give the Trump administration any excuse to invoke the Insurrection Act. Janet Mills might consider stopping her campaign long enough to implement some protective actions – call her. She’s a friend of Governor Pritzker, maybe he can give her some pointers. Videos of whatever goes down will be very important. See this reference. https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/02/yes-you-have-right-film-ice
And tell our delegation to get the heck home and protect their constituents! Especially Jared Golden, or his legacy will be one of complicity with an attempted fascist takeover.
Contacts:
Phone for Governor Mills’ office: main phone number (207) 287-3531
Senator Susan Collins: Email: www.collins.senate.gov/contact/email-senator-collins/form
Phone: (202) 224-2523 (DC office), (207) 945-0417 (Bangor office)
Senator Angus King: Email www.king.senate.gov/contact
Phone: (202) 224-5344 (DC office), (207) 945-8000 (Bangor office)
Representative Jared Golden: Email: golden.house.gov/contact
Phone: (202) 224-3121 (DC office), (207) 249-7400 (Bangor office)
Representative Chellie Pingree: Email: https://pingree.house.gov/contact/
Phone: (202) 225-6116 (DC office), (207) 774-5019 (Portland office)
Extra Credit.
Action 196 Addendum
Background: See Action 196
Action: More things you can do, thanks to Emanuel Pariser and others!
1. Take Maine’s ICE Watch Hotline Training: Get trained to field, verify, and document potential community ICE sightings and provide trusted, reliable information on ICE activity to immigrant communities.
2. Check out the following Instagram site: https://www.instagram.com/no.ice.for.me/
Learn more about this effort to reign in ICE.
3. Check out https://maineimmigrantrights.org/mirc-resource-hub/ There’s a hotline where you can report a sighting 207 544 9989
4. Call Senator King and ask him to filibuster the appropriations bill for ICE funding, working its way through the Senate. See: https://zeteo.com/p/will-democrats-vote-to-give-trump
5. When you call or write Janet Mills to demand that she protects her citizens, ask her to:
· Direct the State Police to have a strong presence where ICE has deployed for the purpose of assuring legal behavior of ICE agents toward citizens and residents;
· Deploy the Maine National Guard to restore civil order, if the State and local police prove inadequate for the task; and
· Assert State protective custody of ICE detainees held in municipal and county jails until their legal status can be determined and adjudicated if necessary.
5. Contact your state rep and senator and demand that they introduce and/or support Maine legislation to require ICE and Border Patrol to have Masks Off and name badges on. More information here: https://joycevance.substack.com/p/should-ice-agents-be-able-to-wear/