One of my favorite local Mexican/Indigenous restaurants was targeted by federal agents.

[MLAA]

https://www.tucsonsentinel.com/local/report/021225_la_indita_ice/ice-probes-tucson-restaurant-la-indita-known-indigenous-focus-activism/

When Denise Schafer arrived at her restaurant on Tuesday afternoon, three federal agents with Homeland Security Investigations, a part of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, were waiting in the lobby for her.

As the Trump administration launches a "shock and awe" program aimed at undocumented migrants and legal immigrants with criminal records, enlisting agents from across federal law enforcement to fill quotas, ICE agents in Tucson have engaged in targeted arrests and launched investigations into a number of small businesses.

Around 1 p.m. on Tuesday, an employee at La Indita — a Tucson stalwart that has served Mexican and Indigenous-style food for more than 40 years — called Schafer to tell her the ICE agents were at the eatery and were asking questions about employees.

Schafer and Shawn Soulsby, the operations manager, called their attorney and rushed to the business on North Stone Avenue.

When they arrived, the agents handed Schafer paperwork, but there were errors on the original, which had been haphazardly scratched out and rewritten by hand, she said.

Schafer said she felt "intimidated" because the agents showed up in the middle of the day, not wearing uniforms and pushed her to sign paperwork and give her ID. However, they were stymied by attorney Stacy Scheff, who "kind of stopped them in their tracks and said that the paperwork that they had was didn't look legit."

Schafer said the lead agent, a special agent with Homeland Security Investigations, said he wasn't with ICE — HSI's parent agency. The other agents, both young and "much more intimidating physically" were along for training, she said.

[Lunabell]

1. Magat vigilantes?

We're they legit at all?

[Norrrm]

2. I was going to guess at the end of the meal. So, they would not have to tip or pay.

[blm]

3. Sounds like a White Nationalist posse.

Hateful beings.

[Maraya1969]

4. Someone should write out how us US citizens can help these immigrants

in this type of situation. When I think of it there are many ethnic restaurants around here and I don't know who they would target. But I would like to know if I could be helpful if I am ever in the situation and I'm sure a lot of people here would like to be helpful to our neighbours and friends also.

[Silent Type]

5. Glad they had help close by. trumpsters love seeing poor people afraid of being deported.

[Kali]

6. the assholes are really unleashed now

[AverageOldGuy]

7. Tucson, Arizona

If I'm not mistaken, this is one of the locations where self-appointed "election monitors" appear, carrying weapons, and walk back and forth along lines where people are waiting in line to vote. The idea is they will frighten some people to leave and not vote.

I'll bet a month's pay these assholes were local "militia" thugs.

[summer_in_TX]

8. My United Methodist Church Mission team has been researching how to help.

Bishop Cynthia Fierro Harvey (Rio Texas and Texas Annual Conferences) along with the Rio Texas Conference of the UMC are taking the point position for a faithful response on immigration issues in the U.S. due to the proximity to the border and the length of the border that Texas shares with Mexico. Our church is in the Rio Texas Conference.

We have pulled together a variety of resources to be of help, including to help members of our congregation know their own rights if ICE questions us.

Churches (and other organizations) have 4th amendment rights. That gives them the right to refuse to admit law enforcement into the church [or business] unless certain conditions are met.
• A valid search warrant must be presented that was signed by a judge (not just an ICE or other law enforcement official).
• All names listed in the search warrant must be correct, with correct spelling and contact information

Plus they have the right to remain silent (5th amendment rights).

We have printed up Red Cards - Know Your Rights in Spanish on one side and English on the other. There are videos, links to all the Texas-based legal organizations that provide services to immigrants, and so forth. We will be adding the form for those parents who want to assign power of attorney to an American citizen to allow them to care for their children if the parents are arrested for deportation.

The United Methodist Church is one of 27 religious groups including millions of Christians and Jews suing the Trump administration for infringing on our right to religious freedom through their changes to the sensitive locations designation that would allow ICE to seek undocumented people on church premises.

Here's some that you may want to know about.

Red Cards / Tarjetas Rojas

The Know-Your-Rights Red Cards are available in more than 20 languages. On one side they advise of legal rights, on the other side are those rights in English. The cards are designed to be provided to immigration authorities while staying safe, asserting those rights, and asking for a lawyer.

Download printable Red Cards or order from here.

Know-Your-Rights

Informed Immigrants provides a concise set of what rights immigrants hold and how to exercise them in various settings: Website visitors can choose their language in which to view the website. Specific legal recommendations for the following situations are covered:

Your Rights Inside of Your Home
If ICE comes to your door
If ICE has a valid warrant or enters your home without permission

Your Rights Outside of Your Home
If you are stopped in a public space
If you are at work
If you are driving
If you are at an airport or port of entry

[GusBob]

10. My friend, who actually is a Trumper

Lives and works on the border there. He can speak the languages of Indigenous Mexican Tribes and actually has served as a translator for some of the religious rescue missions.

He is sympathetic towards the border crossers and has helped them at times out in the desert in the course of his duties. He loves Mexico and believes the immigrants, especially Indigenous ones would be better off in their homelands

He also has had run ins with the cartels which is the main reason he is Pro-Trump

[GusBob]

9. Very informative article, which judging by the comments here

Nobody bothered to read.
Clearly the agents were not vigilantes, they are just poorly trained. The article details the agencies they work for and the regulations they use
Secondly the article describes several support groups and how businesses handle the raids

And the scariest parts are described late in the article

[Tickle]

11. It's very common for others

not to read the article but to go off the headline which is usually misleading