We Don’t Get Ready, We Stay Ready with ACLU’s Cecillia Wang and W. Kamau Bell

WASHINGTON – The Senate today blocked another measure that would have provided funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) without any meaningful reforms to limit violent and abusive tactics by federal agents. The vote comes as the Trump administration announced a drawdown of federal law enforcement presence in Minneapolis, following widespread outcry over ICE’s growing lawlessness in Minneapolis and nationwide. New polling shows that 52 percent of Americans want Congress to withhold funding for DHS if they do not get the reforms they seek. With DHS slated to shut down this weekend, Senate Democrats are continuing to highlight their demands for an end to indiscriminate stops and warrantless arrests by ICE, as well as enforceable standards and accountability for violent misconduct by federal agents, and requirements that agents identify themselves and take off their masks. In response to this news, Naureen Shah, director of policy and government affairs for immigration at the American Civil Liberties Union, had the following reaction: “Communities across the country have been loud and clear: it’s past time to rein in ICE’s abuses. The American people don’t want to see their taxpayer dollars being used to fuel rogue agencies that kill their neighbors, arrest people based on the color of their skin, or put children behind bars. "While we applaud the senators who held the line, we urge members of Congress to once and for all heed constituents’ calls for meaningful reforms against ICE’s abuses. The safety of our communities and our freedom depend on it.”

On February 10, 2026, CLRP, along with the ACLU of Idaho and Wendy J. Olson, former U.S. Attorney for the District of Idaho, and partner at Stoel Rives, filed a putative class action lawsuit challenging an immigration raid carried out at a popular family event in Wilder, Idaho in October 2025.

BOISE – The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Idaho filed a putative class action lawsuit today challenging an immigration raid carried out at a popular family event in Wilder, Idaho. In October 2025, more than 200 federal, state, and local law enforcement officers descended on the La Catedral arena with armored trucks and helicopters, flashbang grenades, and guns drawn, detaining approximately 400 spectators – including U.S. citizens and children – for four hours of detention in inhumane conditions. On October 19, at the height of an otherwise festive and calm day, masked law enforcement stormed La Catedral arena to conduct a dragnet immigration raid. They shoved compliant people to the ground, forcibly dragged people out of their cars, shot rubber bullets, and threw flashbang grenades into cars that had people sitting inside. Parents and children were zip tied at gunpoint, and agents subjected people to hours of violent and degrading treatment. “Our plaintiffs were treated as less than human because ICE and their willing partners think they can disregard fundamental rights if it gets them immigration arrests,” said Jenn Rolnick Borchetta, deputy director of policing at the ACLU. “From Wilder, to Minneapolis, to Chicago, the Trump administration is trampling our rights using racially biased tactics that make us all less safe. The administration can suggest that this abuse is immune from legal consequences, but it is not, and we intend to prove that in court.” The ACLU’s lawsuit, brought on behalf of three Latino families who are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents and a putative class, is the first major challenge in the second Trump administration to ICE tactics that discriminate based on ethnicity. Juana Rodriguez and her 3-year-old son are U.S. citizens. Juana was handcuffed in zip ties for several hours. Police instructed Juana’s 3-year-old to hold onto her pocket, which officers turned inside out. He held onto her pocket crying during the several hours they were detained. "On October 19, I took my 3-year-old to a family-friendly event where we could eat, play, and enjoy horse races together,” said Juana Rodriguez. “What happened turned our outing into a nightmare. My toddler was forced to witness an incredible amount of violence against people he loves and hear racial slurs about Latinos, experiences that no child should ever be exposed to. I'll never forget hearing his little voice pleading with me to give him food and water for hours on end. As a parent, nothing is more heartbreaking than hearing your child cry out in fear and being told you cannot hold or comfort them. “I am a proud U.S. citizen, and I didn't do anything wrong. While nothing will ever undo the harm of that day, I joined this lawsuit because I know what happened to me was wrong and because no family should be treated this way again.” The horseraces at La Catedral are a beloved family-friendly event in Wilder and have long been a place for the local Latino community to celebrate Mexican culture. On typical weekends at La Catedral, families with young children and elderly grandparents spend time outside together, enjoying the races, their favorite Mexican foods, and playing games. "In moments like this, we ask ourselves: is this the kind of society we want to be?" said Leo Morales, executive director of the ACLU of Idaho. "Those children and their mothers are traumatized for life. It is heartbreaking that federal, state, and local police turned a family-friendly event into a place of nightmares. While nothing can undo what these families endured, we can hold those in power to account and ensure no one else has to endure this treatment in the future." The lawsuit was filed by the ACLU, ACLU of Idaho, and Wendy J. Olson, former U.S. Attorney for the District of Idaho, and partner at Stoel Rives. The complaint is available here: https://www.aclu.org/documents/rodriguez-et-al-v-porter-et-al-class-action-complaint

One legal advocate reflects on how she researched the opaque immigration landscape in Louisiana, connected with detained people, and designed a blueprint for immigration work amid the Trump administration’s deportation crackdown.