Edited by Steve Volk ([email protected])
Oberlin Community Supporting Immigrants (OCSI) does not endorse or oppose candidates for elected office. We aim to provide information, education, and analysis regarding the U.S. immigration system.
Know Your Rights: You can’t protect your rights unless you know what they are. Here’s a 2-page handout prepared by OCSI. If you want a comprehensive resource library of KYR information, updated for 2026, Austin Kocher provides one here.
OCSI Corner
Do you need a speaker on immigration of “know your rights” for your local church, synagogue, or community group? Contact us at the email below. We can help! Save The Date: KNOW YOUR RIGHTS/KNOW YOUR RISKS: What to Do When ICE Shows Up: Training and updates for newcomers and experienced folks. Oberlin Public Library (65 S. Main Street, Oberlin), Thursday, Feb. 12, 7:00PM. Co-sponsored by OCSI and Lorain County Rising.
ACTION ITEMS
Indivisible Campaign: Tell Congress to Rein in ICE Now. Sign the “ICE Out for Good” petition here.
Oppose Ohio House Bill 42. The bill would require the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce to report data to the federal government about the citizenship and immigration status of students in every public school in Ohio. TYou can find a Sample resolution here. Contact Government Oversight Committee: Ask Chair Thomas Hall not to give HB 42 any more hearings: (614) 644-5094 or [email protected]
Ask Committee Vice Chair Ron Ferguson to help stop HB 42: (614) 466-3735 or [email protected].
Upcoming Regional Events:
WED JAN 28, 3pm: Melt ICE. Part 1: Immigrant Detention 101. Organized by Detention Watch Network. Register at https://t.e2ma.net/click/nz6t40/zomw8yce/ruhy89p
WED JAN 28, 7-8:30pm: ICE Watch & Community Defense. Online training by States at the Core and Protect RP (Chicago) on effectively protecting your neighborhoods from federal enforcement incursions. ICE Watch and other rapid response tactics are key strategies being used by people across the country to protect their communities against aggressive activity from federal law enforcement. Info here
THU JAN 29, 1-2pm: Learning from Minneapolis. Special organizing call by the United Church of Christ with Megan Berger (UCC Minister for Migration and Refugee Services) and Rev Michael Howard (Minister of Faith in Action, UCC Living Water Association ONE). This is a space to listen, process, and discern together what faithful response might look like, as well as what resources and support are available for congregational engagement moving forward. Zoom link here
THU JAN 29, 7pm: ICE Defense Training. This virtual training is specifically for Cleveland and NE Ohio. Register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/qb0aHIcTSke-h8lX1nV0Lw#/registration
PICK THREE (No time for all the reporting? Here are three important stories from the past week that you might have overlooked):
Six Steps for Researching the Corporate Enablers of ICE (Lauren Parker, LittleSis, January 21, 2026): Learn about how to research corporations collaborating with ICE in this new guide.
A Vote for ICE Is a Vote Against America (Lisa Gonzalez, Substack, January 21, 2026): Named cases show what Congress continues to fund.
I Accompany Migrants in Court. Their Stories Haunt Me (John J. Hurley, America Magazine, January 16, 2026): The author is a lawyer but does not appear in immigration court in that capacity. Rather he goes as someone to accompany and walk with people in what is a terrifying moment in their lives, to bear witness to some of the worst actions of our government, undertaken in the name of “We the People.”
PHOTO OF THE WEEK
Cold weather in Minneapolis: Watch out for the ICE
LOCAL AND OHIO NEWS
Central Ohio High School Students Protest ICE, Teacher Unions Condemn ICE Activity Near Schools (Ohio Capital Journal, January 23, 2026): “Our immigrant kids are afraid to come to school,” Columbus Education Association President John Coneglio said to the Capital Journal.
Three People Arrested While Protesting Customs and Border Patrol Recruiters at Ohio State University (Ohio Capital Journal, January 22, 2026): More than 50 people, mostly students, protested the career fair, which was held inside a ballroom at the Ohio Union.
After Haitians Endured Campaign Lies, an Ohio Town Prepares for ICE (Daphne Duret, Marshall Project, January 16, 2026): Falsely accused of eating pets, and worse, Haitians in Springfield have survived harassment, and now fear deportation.
MINNEAPOLIS: LIKE A MILITARY OCCUPATION
Thousands March Through Downtown Minneapolis Protesting Against ICE as State Workers Hold General Strike (CBS News, January 23, 2026): Hundreds of businesses in the Twin Cities were closed Friday to protest the presence of federal immigration agents in Minnesota, as thousands of demonstrators have taken to the streets of downtown Minneapolis in a show of solidarity over the Operation Metro Surge crackdown.
The Occupation of Minneapolis: How Residents Are Resisting Trump’s ICE ‘Invasion’ (Guardian, January 23, 2026): 13 min. video.
Economic Strike in Minnesota to Protest Against ICE: ‘No Work, No School, No Shopping’ (Guardian, January 23, 2026): Organizers demand ICE leave state and agency be investigated for constitutional violations.
Anti-ICE Protest at Minnesota Church Leads to 3 Arrests But No Charges for a Journalist (NPR, January 22, 2026): A prominent civil rights attorney and at least two other people involved in an anti-immigration enforcement protest that disrupted a service at a Minnesota church have been arrested, Trump administration officials said Thursday, even as a judge rebuffed related charges against journalist Don Lemon.
Off-Duty Twin Cities Officers Among Those “Targeted” by ICE Agents Looking for Proof of U.S. Citizenship, Chief Says (CBS News, January 20, 2026): The police chief of Brooklyn Park said that in the last two weeks several of the officers in his department had been stopped by federal law enforcement.
Clergy and Faith Leaders Call on People Not to Shop on Friday (KARE-11, January 20, 2026): “We ask all Minnesotans to stay home or protest peacefully as they are called to do so,” said JaNaé Bates Imari, co-executive director of ISAIAH and Faith in Minnesota.
One Day of the ICE Operation in Minneapolis – and the Activists Fighting It (Washington Post, January 20, 2026): The saturation of federal immigration enforcement has reoriented public life in the Twin Cities, especially for non-White residents.
Trump’s Spectacle of Cruelty in Minneapolis (Linda Polgreen, New York Times, January 19, 2026): The true mission in Minneapolis is to stage a spectacle of cruelty upon a city that stands in stark defiance of Trump’s dark vision of America.
RESISTING, PROTESTING, AND ORGANIZING FOR CHANGE
States, Cities Are Hard-Pressed to Fight Violent ICE Arrest Tactics (Stateline, January 22, 2026): Potential approaches include state civil rights laws and a refusal to cooperate.
Democrats Seek to Block Homeland Security Funding Over ICE Concerns (Washington Post, January 21, 2026): The spending bill is set for a vote Thursday, and it’s not clear if it will have enough support to pass.
‘2020 Never Ended’: How Black Lives Matter Organizing Taught Minneapolis to Handle ICE Surge (Guardian, January 20, 2026): From community watch to mutual aid, grassroots networks in the Twin Cities build on efforts spurred during the 2020 George Floyd protests.
Fifty-State ‘Free America Walkout’ Targets Trump, ICE, US Militarization (Military.com, January 19, 2026): Millions of Americans and citizens abroad are being requested to “walk out” as part of a coordinated effort led by nationwide event organizers to rebuke the Trump administration and display “escalating resistance to authoritarian policies and violence.”
ICE vs. Everyone (Erin West, n+1, January 18, 2026): Minneapolis learned a lot from the George Floyd protests, and it shows.
THE COURTS
Federal Judge Extends Deportation Protections for Burmese Migrants (New York Times, January 23, 2026): The ruling represents another setback in the Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign.
US Appeals Court Lifts Order Curbing Immigration Agents’ Tactics Against Minnesota Protesters (Reuters, January 22, 2026): Injunction had barred tear-gassing, arrests of peaceful demonstrators.
Judge Allows Trump Administration to Block Lawmakers’ Access to ICE Facilities (Guardian, January 20, 2026): Judge rules homeland security can insist lawmakers provide weeks’ notice of intention to inspect facilities.
Judge Urges Visa for Wrongfully Deported Student (Inside Higher Ed, January 20, 2026): An assistant U.S. attorney for the Trump administration apologized last week for deporting Any Lucia Lopez Belloza on Nov. 22, despite a court order prohibiting such a move that had been issued the day before, but offered no remedy.
EMERGING POLICY AND THREATS TO IMMIGRANTS
Detaining Toddlers and Minors
US Immigration Agents Detain Two-Year-Old Minnesota Girl: ‘Depravity Beyond Words’ (Guardian, January 23, 2026): DHS detain a toddler and her father on Thursday and fly them to Texas before returning child on judge’s order.
Border Patrol Detains 10-Year Old Spokane Girl and Her Dad, Sends Them to Texas Detention Center (Spokesman Review, January 22, 2026): A Logan Elementary student was detained alongside her father earlier this month despite active asylum case. She is currently being held in Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Dilley, Texas with her father.
Vice President Vance Defends ICE Detainment of 5-Year-Old in Minnesota (USA Today, January 22, 2026): School officials said Liam Conejo Ramos, a preschooler, and his father were detained in their driveway after school on Tuesday and sent to Texas.
Federal Agents Detain Two Teenagers in Minneapolis (MPR News, January 21, 2026): U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers handcuffed and detained two teenagers in south Minneapolis Wednesday afternoon.
Warrantless Entry
How Officers Used New ICE Memo to Forcefully Enter a Minneapolis Home (Washington Post, January 23, 2026): Federal officers used an administrative warrant, signed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement official, instead of a judicial warrant authorized by a judge.
Immigration Officers Assert Sweeping Power to Enter Homes Without a Judge’s Warrant, Memo Says (AP, January 21, 2026): The memo authorizes ICE officers to use force to enter a residence based solely on a more narrow administrative warrant to arrest someone with a final order of removal, a move that advocates say collides with Fourth Amendment protections and upends years of advice given to immigrant communities.
Detention and Deportation and Death
Immigrant’s Death in ICE Custody Ruled Homicide by El Paso Medical Examiner (Texas Tribune, January 21, 2026): Immigration officials initially said the 55-year-old Cuban detainee died of “medical distress” but later changed the cause to suicide. The medical examiner ruled he was suffocated while being restrained.
ICE Arrests Elderly, Underdressed Hmong-American Man Inside His St. Paul Home Over Mistaken Identity, Family Says (CBS News, January 20, 2026): ” It is infuriating to see U.S. citizens, and this gentleman was a U.S. citizen, ripped out of his house without a shirt on, without a coat, without pants, wearing his boxers and Crocs. I don’t know how anyone could watch that happen to anyone,” Mark Goldberg said.
To Their Shock, Cubans in Florida Are Being Deported in Record Numbers (New York Times, January 19, 2026): Cubans had long benefited from legal privileges unavailable to immigrants from other countries. President Trump has changed that.
Army Reservist Says He’s Spent Weeks Trying to Free His Wife from Immigration Detention (NBC, January 18, 2026): Stephanie Kenny-Velasquez had an asylum case pending and no criminal record, her brother and husband said.
Five Key Ways ICE Detention Centers Are Booming Under Trump (USA Today, January 14, 2026): ICE detention has expanded rapidly under Trump, both in terms of the number of facilities and people held.
Targeted Cities
DHS Launches ‘Operation Catch of the Day’ Enforcement in Maine (ABC News, January 21, 2026): The operation is part of the administration’s national immigration crackdown.
Michigan Mayor Says Federal Immigration Authorities Are ‘Terrorizing’ People (Detroit News, January 21, 2026): Sterling Heights Mayor Michael C. Taylor blasted President Donald Trump’s national deportation efforts Tuesday, saying, during a city council meeting, that federal authorities had been “terrorizing” peaceful communities and Trump’s political opponents.
Authoritarianism, Lawlessness, Racism, and Cruelty
ICE Agents Leave Ace of Spades ‘Death Cards’ on Detained Immigrants’ Cars (CPR News, January 23, 2026): Federal immigration officials say they are investigating why some of their agents working in Eagle County left ace of spades cards on cars of detained immigrants.
I’ve Covered Police Abuse for 20 Years. What ICE Is Doing Is Different (Radley Balko, New York Times, January 21, 2026): The Trump administration’s response to Renee Good’s death made no promises of an impartial investigation, showed no regret or remorse, and contained little empathy for her family. From the moment the world learned about her death, the administration pronounced the shooting not only justified but an act of heroism worthy of praise and celebration.
ICE Has Stopped Paying for Detainee Medical Treatment (Judd Legum, Popular Information, January 20, 2026): ICE halted payments in October, and the situation will persist for at least several more months.
Inside Minnesota Hospitals, ICE Agents Unnerve Staff (New York Times, January 19, 2026): As federal agents swarm the Twin Cities, their presence has also grown in medical centers. Health care workers are pushing back.
D.H.S.’s Role Questioned as Immigration Officers Flood U.S. Cities (New York Times, January 18, 2026): The Department of Homeland Security was formed after 9/11 amid international terrorism threats. Now, its most visible targets are domestic.
More Immigrants Detained by ICE Recount Harsh and Cruel Treatment (Katie Herchenroeder, Mother Jones, January 18, 2026): One man targeted at home says agents took “trophy pictures” of him on their personal phones.
Man Detained in Minneapolis Dies in ICE Custody in Texas (MPR News, January 18, 2026): A Nicaraguan man arrested by ICE in Minneapolis earlier this month died in federal custody in Texas on Tuesday, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Builder’s Group Says ICE Raiding Construction Sites without Warrants (Border Report, January 15, 2026): Mario Guerrero, executive director of the South Texas Builders Association, says that Immigration Customs and Enforcement agents are entering job sites and rounding up workers illegally.
Attacks on All Immigration
Trump and Miller Slashing Legal Immigration by 33% to 50% (Forbes, January 20, 2026): New research concludes the Trump administration’s policies will reduce legal immigration to the United States by 33% to 50% over four years. Restricting Americans’ ability to sponsor their closest family members will be the administration’s primary way to lower legal immigration.
Palantir CEO Says AI Will Eliminate the Need for Mass Immigration (SiliconAngle, January 20, 2026): Palantir Technologies Inc. Chief Executive Officer Alex Karp said he believes that when the world hits peak artificial intelligence, there will be so many jobs on offer that mass immigration will be obsolete.
Trump Doesn’t Want Legal Immigrants Either (Idrees Kahloon, The Atlantic, January 18, 2026): New limits reflect sloppy reasoning and a desire for collective punishment.
IMMIGRANTS AND THE ECONOMY
Where Did All the American-Born Roofers Go? (New York Times, January 14, 2026): The real story of how immigrant labor came to define the construction industry.
BY THE NUMBERS
Voters Are Split on Deportations but Disapprove of ICE, Poll Finds (New York Times, January 23, 2026): While roughly half of voters support President Trump’s handling of the border between the United States and Mexico, a sizable majority says that ICE’s tactics have “gone too far.”
Trump’s Immigration Crackdown Faces Growing Disapproval from Voters (The Hill, January 18, 2026): In an AP-NORC poll, just 38 percent of Americans approve of Trump’s immigration enforcement, down from a 49 percent high this spring.
How Many People Has Trump Deported So Far? (New York Times, January 17, 2026): The rate of deportations of people with no criminal record has gone up more than six times over the past year, and during high-profile ICE crackdowns in cities like Los Angeles and Washington, more than half of those arrested had no criminal record.
BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS
Trump’s War on Birthright Citizenship Gets Its Day in Court (Halina Bennet, Substack, January 24, 2026): A decision that could unravel more than a century of legal precedent.
The New American Immigration System: 5 Biggest Changes (Brittany Gibson, Axios, January 22, 2026): A steady stream of policy changes from his administration has made legal immigration much harder just a year into his second term, with more to come.
Trump’s ICE Force Is Sweeping America. Billions in His Tax and Spending Cuts Bill Are Paying for It (PBS, January 20, 2026): The GOP’s big bill is “supercharging ICE,” one budget expert said, in ways that Americans may not fully realize — and that have only just begun.
Who Is on the Frontline of Donald Trump’s Immigration Crackdown? (Guardian, January 19, 2026): These are the federal agencies detaining people across the US – mostly, but not all, under the umbrella of the Department of Homeland Security.
Say Their Names: People Who Died in ICE Custody in 2025: A short video produced by Skylight Films in commemoration of some of the 32 people who died in ICE custody in 2025.
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT Oberlin Community Supporting Immigrants (OCSI): https://oberlincommunitysi.org/
IF YOU KNOW OF OTHERS WHO WOULD LIKE TO RECEIVE THIS WEEKLY BULLETIN: Send an email to: [email protected]