Actions

Members of Congress

  • Sen. Patty Murray
    (202) 224-2621 | Email

  • Sen. Maria Cantwell
    (202) 224-3441 | Email

  • Rep. Suzan DelBene (1st)
    (202) 225-6311 | Email

  • Rep. Kim Schrier (8th)
    (202) 225-7761 | Email

  • Rep. Adam Smith (9th)
    (202) 225-8901 | Email
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    WAISN’s Bystander & Observer Guidelines for documenting immigrant detainment

    For the Week of November 3, 2025

    🎙️Nov 3, 2025 Weekly Actions Audio – available for when you’re on the go

    📣 See Eastside and Seattle Protests 2025 for up-to-date opportunities.

    🔷 Last chance to vote! Please deposit your ballot in a drop-box as soon as possible. Do not wait until the deadline of 8 pm on November 4th as drop boxes may be full.

    🔷 Upset about ICE activities in Washington and around the country? Spotify is running ads recruiting agents for ICE. These ads target vulnerable populations, promise signing bonuses, and normalize fear and intimidation in our neighborhoods. Want to do something? See Indivisible’s Don’t Stream Fascism: Cancel Spotify page for details on how to cancel, along with alternative services you can subscribe to. Then, see our new Resources and ways to help our immigrant neighbors document for ways you can make a real difference locally.

    🔷 If you are a veteran there are a few actions you may be interested in (non-veterans also welcome!):

    • Indivisible Eastside is participating in “No Oaths to Trump” overpass actions on Veterans Day November 11th. Join us at 4 pm in Bellevue or Kirkland or join another area option on the No Oaths to Trump Mobilize page. If you’d like to host an overpass, reach out to rally@indivisibleeastside.com and we can give you some pointers and get you set up with a banner.
    • Seattle Indivisible’s United Veteran-Civilian Response team is working to develop and prepare for street level action before a possible National Guard occupation in Seattle occurs. UVCR is working with Veterans for Peace, and also needs non-veteran civilians to have veterans’ backs – with reliable, steady street level support skills and resources. See the UVCR Linktree to get involved.

    Here are your 3 Actions and Bright Spots.

    ✊ Action 1 – Help those facing cuts to SNAP and Rising Healthcare Premiums

    Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) ran out on November 1st and as of this writing, the Trump administration has yet to comply with two judges who ordered the release of reserve funds. At this late stage many EBT cards will not be replenished when expected, leaving millions of vulnerable families who rely on these benefits hungry. According to DSHS data, more than 905,000 Washingtonians — about 15% of the state’s population — received $167 million in SNAP benefits in May 2025, the most recent month available.

    Trump and Senate republicans are using SNAP recipients as pawns in the government funding fight which Democrats, so far, are standing firm on to try to prevent healthcare costs from catastrophically rising for middle-class Americans. There are two things you can do to help.

    Action 1a: Help local families by donating and volunteering:

    Action 1b: Contact your Senators and ask them to continue to fight for healthcare

    ☎ Sample Script:

    Hi, my name is [NAME], and I’m a constituent from [CITY, ZIP].

    I’m calling to thank Senator Murray/Cantwell for holding the line in the shutdown fight so far, and I expect the senator to KEEP fighting hard until we get a deal that protects us from Trump’s healthcare cuts, price hikes, and lawlessness.

    I’m counting on Senator Murray/Cantwell. Thank you!

    [IF LEAVING A VOICEMAIL: please leave your full street address to ensure your call is tallied]

    ✊ Action 2 – TIPS for what to do (and not do!) when you suspect you’re seeing ICE activity.

    Thank you everyone for caring about your neighbors and for looking out for them. The conversations happening about how we stand together in community during these times are really heartening. You probably know that ICE has been active on the Eastside recently. Here are some do’s & don’ts for when you SEE something. Please make the time to read all the way through.

    PLEASE be cautious when deciding what to do with suspected immigration activity — our immigrant organizations and the reporting organizations ask us for the following when you see or hear of a suspected sighting:

    ✅ DO:

    1. Text or call the WAISN (Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network) hotline, (844) 724-3737 as soon as possible. (tip – add this number to your phone contacts)

    A new number for Eastside Rapid Response is in the works. We’ll share it when it’s available.

    • Give them a description of the scene, what you’re seeing, cross streets or a business name if possible.
    • Identify who you are seeing, and what the action is.
    • If you have video or photographic info, you can text that to the same number.
    • If the vehicles or people have any identifying markings or distinctive clothing, leave that info as well.
    • If you see someone actually being detained, removed, or put in another vehicle, be sure to mention that.
    1. Record the incident if you’re comfortable and able to do so. This is done for several reasons — to help families identify & locate detainees; provide video evidence for legal action; confirm or verify reported sightings while keeping vulnerable community members safer; and provide visible resistance to illegal acts.

    It is legal almost everywhere in the United States to film local or federal enforcement activity in public places, as long as you don’t impede their work. It’s your right to observe and document. You need to be the judge of whether it’s safe for you to record or not — just because it’s legal to do doesn’t mean it’s always safe to do. Text your video footage to WAISN as a follow up to your report, if you already called it in.

    Watch this 1 minute video of a trainer in Chicago telling people just what and how to film. For non-Facebook users, the summary is:

    • Stay at least an arms length away from the officer(s)
    • If they tell you to back up, film yourself doing so
    • Film horizontally
    • Narrate what you’re seeing in as much detail as possible
    • Focus your filming on the officer’s actions
    • Do not share footage publicly without permission of the person being detained or their family

    WHAT HAPPENS AFTER YOU REPORT THE ACTIVITY: [hint: we have friends everywhere]

    A rapid response team is sent out to verify what is happening. This happens fast — there is a team of people on the Eastside ready to respond. One or more people will respond and go check out the location. If the people/vehicles are gone, they talk to folks, and document if anything happened.

    After there are confirmed sightings teams usually drive around the area for a period of time to be onsite for additional reports.

    Reporting to WAISN or to someone you know who is involved in rapid response really is the best way to help.

    ❌ DO NOT – *** This comes directly from immigrant organizations, so please respect their wishes ***

    1. DO NOT POST SUSPECTED SIGHTINGS ON SOCIAL MEDIA. Until they are confirmed, all that reports like this do is ramp up fear and anxiety among the whole community, but especially among vulnerable community members (who are already plenty concerned.) They don’t need additional fear, or worry about missing work/school/doctor’s appointments because of suspected sightings. This applies to immigrants regardless of their immigration status — the anxiety level is off the charts. Let’s not make it worse.

    We’re glad to get ALL reports, and will follow up on them; we just ask that you not post unconfirmed reports online.

    1. DO NOT POST PHOTOS that include anything identifiable (targeted people or vehicles). Once activity is confirmed, it’s ok to post photos or videos that focus on agents and their activity, just don’t include targeted individuals or anything personally identifiable in the photo/video (including their car) without their or their family’s affirmative consent. There are several reasons, but one is that they can become a target, even if they weren’t before. And believe it or not, there are bad actors out there who go out and break into or steal vehicles when reports are posted online. (Sometimes people are the worst.)

    Other important information:

    • Know your legal rights to observe and document ICE (or any law enforcement) activity in public. Know your rights (KYR) cards are available at the library in several languages, or for free online. Print or order several and have them handy to give to people who might need them.
    • You may have read that whistles are becoming a favorite tool to notify a community of ICE activity. They are particularly useful in neighborhoods or dense areas. There are two different whistle rhythms to use:
      • If you spot ice driving or lurking – blow in short blasts “pre—pre—pre—pre”
      • If you see ICE abducting someone, blow continuously “preeeeeeeee-preeeeeeeee”

    If you are interested in learning more about joining a rapid response team please email eastkingrapidresponse@gmail.com. More information will be coming soon about other ways to support the community.  We’ll share it here, and add it to our frequently updated Resources and ways to help our immigrant neighbors.

    Thank you all for caring for your neighbors. Together we can (and are) making a difference.

    ✊ Action 3 – Bellevue City Council: Support Immigrants!

    From Eastside For All

    Immigration arrests have been surging in Washington State, and our Eastside communities are being targeted. To date, the cities of Kirkland, Redmond, and Issaquah have responded to the crisis impacting immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in their communities. Unfortunately, after a year of appeals and advocacy from local immigrant organizations to the City of Bellevue to do the same, they have yet to take action. This despite Bellevue being the largest Eastside city with the most resources and the most immigrants (over 40% of Bellevue’s population was born outside the US.) “Bellevue Welcomes the World. Diversity is Our Strength.” That’s Bellevue’s tag line.

    Ask Bellevue to walk their talk. Email Council@bellevuewa.gov & citymanager@bellevuewa.gov

    • Ask Bellevue to provide emergency funding to immigrant serving organizations, as have their colleagues in Kirkland, Redmond, and Issaquah.
    • Encourage Bellevue to invest at least $500,000 from Bellevue’s contingency funds to support services to immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in Bellevue most impacted by federal immigration policies and expanded enforcement actions.
    • Share any specific stories or information about why you think this is important for Bellevue to provide emergency funding to immigrant-led and serving organizations. (You may also want to request that Bellevue prioritize Eastside-founded organizations who are trusted and stretched very thin to meet the needs of Bellevue community members being impacted.)

    Background Info: Bellevue had the opportunity to get ahead of this when they issued nearly $2.8M in additional, one-time funding for Human Services for 2025-2026. Unfortunately, Council didn’t seek guidance from its Human Services Commission or staff and they exacerbated funding gaps by eliminating the “Culturally Specific Supportive Services” category that they had in the regular Human Services fund. If they had followed the same funding allocations proportionally, then immigrant-led organizations would have received an additional $700K. Hence the ask now for $500K. At the October 26 Council Meeting, Councilmember Hamilton proposed the possible use of Council Contingency funds to support impacted immigrant communities. Councilmember Lee suggested that organizations ask Amazon for money.

    ☎ Sample Script:

    Dear Councilmembers,

    The cities of Kirkland, Redmond and Issaquah have granted emergency funds to help their immigrant communities. Community organizations have advocated and appealed to the city of Bellevue for funding. Given that Bellevue is the largest of the Eastside cities, I urge the city to grant a MINIMUM of $500,000 to Eastside-founded organizations who are trusted and stretched very thin to meet the needs of Bellevue community members being impacted.

    Over 40% of Bellevue’s population was born outside the US. ICE is targeting all kinds of people (not just undocumented) so all of our community members are at risk. People are terrified. People are not leaving their homes. People in Bellevue have been abducted by unidentifiable masked people, and have waited days to find out where their loved ones were taken. This is completely unacceptable and we need the city to step up and support our immigrant community. Providing these funding resources to the local community organizations is critical to support the immigrant community being targeted. Please allocate at least $500,000.

    Thank you.

    ⛅ Bright Spots

    from Good News for Lefties and other sources

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