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Network, ACLU Train Volunteers To Respond During ICE Raids

As U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, increases its activity in Wyoming and the nation, some activists are taking steps to provide legal information to immigrants.

When the Wyoming Rapid Response Network gets word that an ICE raid is in progress, they dispatch legal observers to the scene. These observers are tasked with documenting what is said and done there. The network also sends volunteers to question witnesses and inform people of their constitutional and legal rights while the raid is occurring.

The network and the ACLU are currently recruiting more volunteers, and hosting a training session this weekend. Antonio Serrano, with the ACLU's Wyoming chapter, said he wants people in the state to assist the network during this crucial time.

"I mean, we lose one person a week on average here in Laramie County and they're expanding to a facility where they can deport 18 a day," he said. "In Jackson, they've been getting hit for the past couple months. They've been getting hit every other week if not more often. And they're losing three to four people each time."

Having people on the scene to document what's going on, Serrano said, is necessary for ensuring the constitutional rights of immigrants.

"I need Latinx people in Wyoming to stand up and stand with me," Serrano said. "This is an extremely difficult time. We're literally under attack. Literally. And it's time for us to really stand up, raise our voices, be present. Everybody is guaranteed their rights under the constitution, no matter of status. Everybody."

The training takes place at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Cheyenne.

Jeff is a part-time reporter for Wyoming Public Media, as well as the owner and editor of the Laramie Reporter, a free online news source providing in-depth and investigative coverage of local events and trends.
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