Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 30/09/2026www.kqed.org/news/1210180...kqed.orgNewsom Signs Bills to Rein In Trump Immigration Efforts | KQEDThe governor signed more than 20 bills related to immigration. 000
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 30/09/2026www.sbsun.com/2026/09/29/s...sbsun.comSuicidal ICE detainees are routinely put in solitary confinement. Experts say that’s inhumane911 calls reveal multiple suicide attempts at Adelanto ICE center. 001
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)First Amendment Coalition @facoalition.bsky.social · 29/09/2026@governor.ca.gov has signed SB 423, the Detention Facility Transparency Act!Authored by @senatorgonzalez.bsky.social and cosponsored by FAC and @immdefense.bsky.social, the new law will make public 911 calls from immigration detention centers. ⬇️ calmatters.org/justice/2026...calmatters.orgData from 911 calls at ICE detention centers must be disclosed under new California lawGov. Newsom signed a law compelling disclosure of emergency calls from ICE detention centers. It followed CalMatters' reporting about alleged rapes at one site. 054
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)KQED News @kqednews.kqed.org · 28/09/2026ww2.kqed.orgNewsom Vetoes Bill to Fund Immigration Attorneys in Rural CaliforniaThe governor said the proposal duplicates existing efforts to support residents facing deportation. 045
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026With the veto killing a chance to enshrine the fellowship into law, Gonzalez said she fears the program could be reshaped into something “that no longer prioritizes rural communities at all.” 011
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026www.kqed.org/news/1210156... Newsom Vetoes Bill to Fund Immigration Attorneys in Rural California - by @tychehendricks.bsky.social @kqednews.kqed.org @governor.ca.gov @gavinnewsom.bsky.social @govpressoffice.gov.ca.gov @igardon.bsky.socialkqed.orgNewsom Vetoes Bill to Fund Immigration Attorneys in Rural California | KQEDThe governor said the proposal duplicates existing efforts to support residents facing deportation. 101
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026The Fellowship did not come from the Governor. It was built by advocates, legal-service providers and communities confronting immigration enforcement and legal deserts firsthand. That work began before the @gavinnewsom.bsky.social and will continue long after it is gone. @govpressoffice.gov.ca.gov 000
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026 Rural communities do not simply need another allocation somewhere in California’s immigration-services system. They need attorneys, mentorship, experienced organizations and a deliberate pathway to build permanent legal capacity of their own. 100
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026That matters. Without SB 1194’s protections in statute, the Fellowship can be reshaped into something very different, including a program that no longer prioritizes rural communities at all. That is exactly why codification was needed. 100
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026This year’s budget language also strips out the Fellowship’s explicit focus on rural and historically underserved regions, replacing it with broad language about “sustainable, cost-effective fellowship strategies.” 100
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026The Fellowship was a pathway into that system. It helped organizations build staff, experience, training and capacity so underserved communities could develop lasting legal infrastructure instead of remaining permanent legal deserts. 100
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026Newsom also points to tens of millions already spent on immigration legal services. But that misses the problem: historically underfunded regions often lack the lawyers and nonprofit infrastructure needed to access those dollars in the first place. 100
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026Watch SB 1194's Sentate Judiciary hearing to to hear firsthand support from the community, including from legal fellows trained in the program youtu.be/SriGuA1cmXA?...youtu.beSB 1194 - Senate Judiciary Committee -YouTube video by IDA 110
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026The model worked. The first Fellowship placed 19 fellows with 13 organizations in the Central Valley, Central Coast, and Inland Empire. Those fellows delivered more than 2,400 legal services across 39 counties. 100
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026SB 1194 was not just about funding individual cases. The Fellowship trained attorneys, placed them in underserved communities, and helped local organizations build the capacity needed to qualify for long-term state immigration legal-services funding. 100
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026Newsom argues SB 1194 is unnecessary because the budget already includes $7.5M for the Fellowship. But temporary budget funding is not the same as protecting the program’s purpose in law. That funding made codification more important, not less. 100
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/09/2026IDA is deeply disappointed by @governor.ca.gov's veto of SB 1194, which would have established the Immigration Legal Fellowship Project in state law protected its focus on rural and historically underserved regions- Read our full statement here imadvocates.org/statement-fr... @igardon.bsky.socialimadvocates.orgStatement from Immigrant Defense Advocates on Governor Newsom’s Veto of SB 1194 – IDA 100
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Ginny LaRoe @ginnylaroe.bsky.social · 22/09/2026Journalists are working tirelessly to cover what's happening in immigration detention centers. Too often they face barriers to information that should be public. That’s why we need SB 423, a public records bill. It's time for Gov. Newsom to sign it into law. www.ocregister.com/2026/09/20/t...ocregister.comTo stop abuse in private detention facilities, Gov. Newsom must sign SB 423California’s public record laws are focused on a basic principle: a lack of transparency hurts the public interest and leads to abuses of power. 124
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)First Amendment Coalition @facoalition.bsky.social · 05/09/2026We agree! Thank you @senatorgonzalez.bsky.social for introducing this important transparency bill, and @johncusack.bsky.social for shedding light on this critical issue! 022
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 01/09/2026calmatters.org/justice/2026... @facoalition.bsky.social @wendyfry.bsky.social @calmatters.orgcalmatters.orgData from 911 calls at ICE detention centers must be released under bill going to Gov. NewsomThe California Legislature passed a bill that would force disclosure of information about emergency calls at immigrant detention centers. A Democratic lawmaker put it forward after reading news storie... 020
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/08/2026The California Senate passed a “bill of rights” Wednesday codifying protection for immigrants in private civil detention facilities. It now goes to Newsom’s desk. Read more at: www.sacbee.com/news/politic... www.sacbee.com/news/politic...sacbee.com‘Bill of rights’ for civil immigration detainees sent to Newsom’s deskThe bill would align health and safety standards in private, for-profit detention centers with regulations on state-owned facilities. 020
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 25/08/2026Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s ability to conduct raids and arrests is tied to the bed space available in a region. If you build it, they will come for our communities...We can enforce immigration laws without the wholesale detention of communities in private, for-profit facilities. 000
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 25/08/2026"ICE has long presented communities with a false choice: accept inhumane detention facilities or be responsible for loved ones being shipped far away. Those are not our only options." www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/lett...sfchronicle.comLetters: There’s a reason blocking California detention centers is a good strategy to stop ICELETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Chronicle readers comment on ICE detention centers, private schools, the national debt, and Nancy Pelosi and Scott Wiener. 111
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)First Amendment Coalition @facoalition.bsky.social · 20/08/2026FAC's Paloma Esquivel talked to Anthony Victoria of IE Latino Voices on KVCR about SB 423, a bill that would mandate disclosure of 911 call records in California from detention centers, including privately run detention centers. ⬇️ www.kvcrnews.org/local-news/2...kvcrnews.orgIE Latino Voices: Paloma Esquivel on why its hard to get information from ICE detention centersFirst Amendment Coalition's Paloma Esquivel explains why detention centers remain difficult to scrutinize and what public records can reveal about what happens inside. 114
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)First Amendment Coalition @facoalition.bsky.social · 14/08/2026SB 423 is headed for a vote! Thank you to @buffywicks.bsky.social for passage out of Appropriations. And to @SenatorGonzalez.bsky.social and @CALatinoCaucus.bsky.social for prioritizing transparency sd33.senate.ca.gov/news/senator... sd33.senate.ca.gov/news/senator...sd33.senate.ca.govSenator Lena Gonzalez’s Detention Facility Transparency Act Passes Assembly Appropriations Committee, Heads to Assembly FloorSenator Lena A. Gonzalez represents the Southeast Los Angeles County cities of California's 33rd Senate District. 111
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 23/07/2026Shout out to @facoalition.bsky.social for this excellent piece on #SB423! 020
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)First Amendment Coalition @facoalition.bsky.social · 24/06/2026FAC is proud to sponsor this important transparency bill with @immdefense.bsky.social. SB 423 will help shine a light on what people are experiencing in the privately run detention facilities in California. 111
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)NPR @npr.org · 18/04/2026Twenty-nine people have died in ICE custody since October, the start of the federal government's fiscal year, already surpassing 2004's toll of 28, the previous record, according to government data. n.pr/4sLetjVn.prDeaths of migrants in ICE custody hit record high under TrumpTwenty-nine people have died in ICE custody since October, the start of the federal government's fiscal year, already surpassing 2004's toll of 28, the previous record, according to government data. 32867495
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Eunice Cho @eunicehcho.bsky.social · 22/05/2025Thread: ICE detention oversight. The GAO issued a new report on oversight and inspections of ICE detention facilities. www.gao.gov/products/gao.... It confirms what advocates have said for years: DHS has failed to conduct effective oversight of conditions in ICE detention facilities. 1/gao.govImmigration Detention: DHS Should Define Goals and Measures to Assess Facility Inspection ProgramsThe Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement use various inspection programs to help ensure that detention... 121
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Acacia Center for Justice @acaciajustice.org · 20/05/2025"Without funding, that 7-year old boy sitting on the wooden bench in the courtroom, waiting for his case to be called, will have to continue to defend himself in immigration court without an advocate by his side." For more on CHIRP, continue reading in @sacbee.com ▶️ www.sacbee.com/opinion/op-e...sacbee.comCalifornia must fund legal aid for immigrant children facing deportation | Opinion“California must step up to provide legal support for unaccompanied children and all vulnerable individuals at risk of deportation.” 021
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Acacia Center for Justice @acaciajustice.org · 09/05/2025🚨The Trump administration is ending our program to defend people in immigration detention who cannot defend themselves due to severe mental health needs, known as the National Qualified Representative Program (NQRP). Read more in @motherjones.com ▶️ www.motherjones.com/politics/202...motherjones.comTrump's DOJ stripped lifeline legal services from the most vulnerable detained immigrants"Without a lawyer, people don't have a prayer. They don't have a chance in hell." 131
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Acacia Center for Justice @acaciajustice.org · 30/04/2025The Acacia Center for Justice welcomes a federal court's preliminary injunction that temporarily stops the government from withdrawing services or funds for direct legal representation services to unaccompanied children 🐻 ⚖️ acaciajustice.org/acacia-cente...acaciajustice.orgA temporary reprieve for unaccompanied kidsPreliminary injunction prevents the government from withdrawing services or funds for legal representation to unaccompanied children while the case is pending 152
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Eunice Cho @eunicehcho.bsky.social · 29/04/2025Another death resulting from the Trump administration's cruel immigration enforcement and detention policies. Remember Marie Ange Blaise, 44 years old. www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...usatoday.comHaitian woman dies in US immigration detentionAt least six others have died in ICE custody in fiscal 2025, which began in October, ICE data shows. 166
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 22/04/2025I think you tagged the wrong org! 000
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Solitary Watch @solitarywatch.bsky.social · 18/04/2025Solitary confinement is meant to be rare and used only as a last resort — yet ICE is using it more than ever. Behind barbed wire and locked doors, thousands of people are being isolated in silence. No sunlight. No human contact. No accountability. Read more here: tinyurl.com/mrup4ty4 056
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Acacia Center for Justice @acaciajustice.org · 15/04/2025"After the six-month extension, there are a lot of open questions about what protections these vulnerable kids will have," Shaina Aber, executive director of the Acacia Center for Justice, said 011
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 15/04/2025"It is incredibly important that children are provided with an understanding of their rights to be safe and free from harm and to report rights violations to independent legal services providers who can advocate on behalf of children." Please follow @acaciajustice.bsky.social and uplift their work! 041
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 15/04/2025www.npr.org/2025/04/15/g... @acaciajustice.bsky.socialnpr.orgBipartisan senators rebuke White House move to end legal aid for unaccompanied minorsThe letter obtained by NPR marks a rare bipartisan critique from Capitol Hill of the administration's immigration policy. 041
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Wendy Fry @wendyfry.bsky.social · 10/04/2025“The law doesn’t permit Border Patrol to assume that people are violating immigration law because they’re Brown.” calmatters.org/justice/2025...calmatters.orgBorder Patrol to retrain hundreds of California agents on how to comply with the ConstitutionAfter immigration sweeps in Kern County and a CalMatters investigation, the federal government will train California agents on when they can stop people. 021
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Bolts @boltsmag.org · 08/04/2025They wanted to ban the use of solitary confinement against pregnant Californians. They got something else entirely. boltsmag.org/califor...boltsmag.orgOn Solitary Confinement, California Officials Side With the Prison System—AgainOrganizers wanted to ban the use of solitary confinement against pregnant Californians. They got something else entirely. 53514
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Abolitionist Law Center @abolitionistlawcenter.org · 07/04/2025Join us 6-8pm 4/7 TONIGHT for The Strike – online film screening of this award-winning documentary on the hunger strike against solitary confinement that took place at Pelican Bay prison in California in 2013. Followed by a discussion with key leaders. docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F... 011
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 02/04/2025www.investigativepost.org/2025/04/01/f...investigativepost.orgTrump admin locking up families, children at NY-Canada crossingsU.S. Customs and Border Protection is detaining families with young children for days and weeks at crossings along the New York-Canada border 000
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Gabe Ortíz @tusk81.bsky.social · 02/04/2025A federal judge in California on Tuesday ordered the Trump administration to temporarily restore legal aid to tens of thousands of migrant children who are in the United States without a parent or guardian: www.npr.org/2025/04/02/n...npr.orgJudge orders White House to restore legal aid to unaccompanied migrant childrenA federal judge in California has ordered the Trump administration to temporarily restore legal aid to tens of thousands of migrant children who are in the United States without a parent or guardian. 14615
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 28/03/2025www.theguardian.com/world/2025/m...theguardian.comItalian government approved use of spyware on members of refugee NGO, MPs toldNational security committee is investigating whether secret services breached law by using surveillance tool to monitor activists and journalists 020
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Immigrant Defenders Law Center @immdef.bsky.social · 22/03/2025#BreakingNews On 3/21/25 we received a near total termination of our federal contract for legal services under the Unaccompanied Children Program (UCP). No child should ever face a heartless immigration system w/o a lawyer by their side. #SaveUCP Read: www.immdef.org/blog/ucpcont... 12269180
Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA) @immdefense.bsky.social · 22/03/2025The administration’s decision to end these services undermines due process, disproportionately impacts vulnerable children, and puts children who have already experienced severe trauma at risk for further irreparable harm or exploitation. acaciajustice.org/acacia-decri...acaciajustice.orgAcacia Center for Justice Decries Administration’s Termination of Representation for Unaccompanied Children“The administration’s decision to end these services undermines due process, disproportionately impacts vulnerable children, and puts children who have already experienced severe trauma at risk for fu... 031
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Rebecca Plevin @rebeccaplevin.bsky.social · 12/03/2025Farming groups are looking to stabilize their workforce amid the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration. But which workforce should be prioritized in legislation: the undocumented domestic workers who have toiled in the fields for decades or foreign guest workers on H-2A visas?latimes.comCalifornia farm groups look to stabilize workforce amid crackdown on illegal immigrationAs the Trump administration cracks down on illegal immigration, California farm groups are working to influence legislation that would ensure a stable supply of laborers for an industry long reliant o... 0226
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Wendy Fry @wendyfry.bsky.social · 21/02/2025The Department of the Interior has reversed course on a stop-work order issued Feb. 18 to at least one legal service provider for unaccompanied minors in California, according to an internal memo. 0298
Reposted by Immigrant Defense Advocates (IDA)Rebecca Plevin @rebeccaplevin.bsky.social · 21/02/2025The Trump Administration on Friday restored a program that funds lawyers representing unaccompanied minors in immigration court, days after halting it with little explanation. via @racheluranga.bsky.sociallatimes.comTrump administration reinstates funds for lawyers representing 26,000 children in immigration courtTrump administration reverses itself on a program providing lawyers for 4,000 migrant children in immigration court. 041