WITNESS & BDS Join Hands to Empower Immigrant Communities

On July 19, WITNESS and Brooklyn Defender Services (BDS) hosted an event that gave an up-close look into the work being done to empower immigrant communities in their fight against Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials. The evening featured a screening of “We Have Rights,” a series of powerful animated short films created to equip immigrant communities with knowledge to safely defend themselves and exercise their rights during encounters with ICE, including information on how to document these encounters.

The screening was followed by a conversation on the importance of storytelling, documentation and knowing your rights in the current immigration landscape. This conversation was led by Emma Whitford, a journalist focusing on the human impact of immigration enforcement, and featured filmmaker Abby Goldberg, Supervising Attorney of Immigration at BDS Nyasa Hickey, survivor of family separation, Carlos de Jesus, and our very own U.S. Program Coordinator Palika Makam.

After the panel, our U.S. team held an impromptu training on how you use your cell phone to document abuses against immigrant communities, learn more about your rights, and how you can support grassroots organizations working on the frontlines of immigration justice.

Head over to our Facebook page to watch a video recap of the event.