SAN FRANCISCO — More than 100 people in San Francisco and dozens more in Sacramento gathered this week to protest a wave of Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests at immigration court buildings in Northern California, which advocates say is part of a nationwide campaign to intimidate immigrants and undermine the right to due process.
The protests were sparked by reports that ICE agents had conducted enforcement operations inside and around immigration courts, including arrests of individuals attending their scheduled hearings. Advocates, attorneys, elected officials and community members rallied outside the San Francisco and Sacramento immigration courts, decrying what they called “legalized abductions” and calling for immediate action to protect immigrant communities.
In San Francisco, demonstrators assembled outside 100 Montgomery St., where five people were arrested by ICE in the past week. Participants held signs reading “Hands Off Immigrants,” “Defend Due Process” and “End the Deportations and Abductions.” Organizers handed out red “know your rights” cards and vowed to resist what they described as a deliberate campaign of fear by federal authorities.
Sanika Mahajan, director of community engagement and organizing at Mission Action and a member of the San Francisco Rapid Response Network, said the operations were designed to terrorize immigrant communities.
“We refuse to be intimidated. We will stand up and fight back, and will be here to defend our immigrant communities and make sure they have access to due process, day in and day out,” Mahajan said.
San Francisco Public Defender Mano Raju said the arrests violate core constitutional protections.
“Your right to go to court, to share your story with a judge, to present evidence — these are basic and critical constitutional rights,” Raju said. “These fundamental rights are under attack by the Trump regime.”
Raju called on local and state leaders to invest in immigration legal services and rapid response infrastructure and to publicly denounce what he described as federal scare tactics.
“Your right to go to court, to share your story with a judge, to present evidence – these are basic and critical constitutional rights. These fundamental rights are under attack by the Trump regime.” – Mano Raju
Milli Atkinson, director of the Immigrant Legal Defense Program at the Justice & Diversity Center of the Bar Association of San Francisco, warned that the moment requires moral clarity.
“We are not going to stand by and let authoritarianism take over our country. We have the power to fight for the tired, the poor, and the huddled masses yearning to be free,” Atkinson said. “To the advocates here today, you have the power every day to stand up for justice and to be on the right side of history.”
Lisa Knox, legal director and co-executive director of the California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice, reminded the crowd that those targeted still have rights.
“They have the right to oppose any attempt by the government to dismiss their case. They have the right to talk to a volunteer lawyer for advice, and they have the right to ask for help if ICE is trying to arrest them,” Knox said. “They’re starting with immigrants, but they’re not going to end there. We need to show that we are not going to take it.”
Luna Osleger-Montañez of the We Fight Back Coalition said even the limited legal protections currently available to immigrants were won through organizing and are now under attack.
“This latest tactic of detaining immigrants at immigration courts immediately after attempting to unilaterally dismiss their case – including any applications they have filed – is a new low. This undermines the constitutional right to due process and attempts to intimidate individuals navigating the system.” – Marcus Tang
“What we’re seeing in courts across the country, including here in San Francisco, is a fear tactic, plain and simple,” Osleger-Montañez said. “Even those meager rights that we have now, the right wing and the billionaire class of this country are trying to take those away.”
Fernando Antunez, a social worker with Legal Services for Children and a member of the FREE SF Coalition, said the ICE presence near immigration courts endangers public safety.
“We say ‘no’ to any and all collusion between local law enforcement and federal immigration officials,” Antunez said. “District Attorney Jenkins: stop colluding with federal immigration.”
Iris Barrera, field director at Trabajadores Unidos Workers United, spoke out against efforts to reopen the Dublin detention center, a former federal prison that was shuttered last year.
“If they succeed in re-opening this facility, it would be the biggest detention center in Northern California,” Barrera said. “This isn’t just about Dublin. This is about the working class across Northern California.”
In Sacramento, more than 40 people gathered outside the Sacramento Immigration Court on Capitol Mall to denounce similar operations. Organizers said ICE agents arrested three asylum seekers on Tuesday, including individuals who had followed all court instructions and submitted necessary paperwork. The detainees were reportedly transferred to the Golden State Annex in McFarland, hundreds of miles from their families and legal advocates.
Jessie Mabry, CEO of Opening Doors, said ICE’s actions represent a dangerous escalation.
“This latest tactic of detaining immigrants at immigration courts immediately after attempting to unilaterally dismiss their case — including any applications they have filed — is a new low,” Mabry said. “This undermines the constitutional right to due process and attempts to intimidate individuals navigating the system.”
Marcus Tang, executive director of the California Immigration Project, said these tactics weaponize the legal system.
“Our courts — where people go to follow the law — are being turned into traps,” Tang said. “This is not justice. It is fear-based governance.”
Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang said the arrests undermine community safety and violate basic human rights.
“Sanctuary policies are legal and ensure safety for all. When families are torn apart, it’s not a policy failure — it’s a human failure,” Vang said. “I will never stop fighting for our immigrant and refugee families and will continue to stand up for all working people in this city.”
Jessie DeHaven, a volunteer attorney with the Sacramento Attorney of the Day Program, said the arrests had a chilling effect on legal proceedings.
“When individuals in immigration proceedings fear going to court, this undermines the right to due process for everyone,” DeHaven said. “If we allow the government to take away people’s right to due process, we are all at risk.”
Giselle Garcia, a volunteer with NorCal Resist, said the community is stepping up to protect one another.
“We are here to let the government and its actors acting in bad faith who have chosen to target immigrants know that we, as a collective, have chosen to stand by and protect our neighbors outside the courtroom and anywhere this fight takes us,” Garcia said.
Kamalpreet Chohan, coordinator of the Sacramento Attorney of the Day Program, confirmed that ICE made at least three arrests inside the courthouse on May 27, all in full view of family members and others attending removal hearings.
“This practice is clearly meant to evoke fear and panic in our community,” Chohan said. “This system is designed to isolate people. But we are here to remind each other: we’re not in this alone. We are stronger, and safer, when we show up for one another.”
Claudia Rios Manzo, program coordinator of the Sacramento FUEL Network, called on elected officials and the public to support those on the frontlines.
“Our undocumented community, without a vote, has rallied countless times and garnered support in your names,” Manzo said. “Many of your platforms were built on the backs of their stories. Now is the time to act on and fulfill those promises. This fight for justice needs your support and allyship.”
Organizers urged community members to join rapid response networks and continue showing up in defense of their neighbors. A full list of resources is available through the California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice at ccijustice.org/carrn.
