Spotlight
Standing With NYC’s Immigrant Communities
Many have asked how they can help. Below are organizations providing legal aid, food, and shelter to immigrant families, along with state resources for reporting federal overreach. We’ll continue updating this list as more information becomes available.
APRIL 2026 - Support Immigrant Communities
ICE Prep Canvassing with VID/Siffert for Assembly - Sundays starting April 19, 1–3 PM
Exciting news! David Siffert and VID are restarting the ICE prep business canvassing! Join us Sundays starting April 19, 1–3 PM, as we canvass West Village businesses to help them prepare for ICE activity. This is important, impactful work, and a meaningful, rewarding way to support our neighbors. We’ll meet at 40 Perry St. for a brief training and materials. Just show up, and everything will be provided. Questions? Contact [email protected] or [email protected]
RSVP for details here.
Sanctuary Homes Workshop - Wednesday, April 15 · 7–8:30 PM
Immigrant care workers and neighbors are under attack. If you employ a nanny, house cleaner, or caregiver (or know someone who does), this workshop offers practical steps you can take now to support and protect them, through clear communication, concrete actions, and real solidarity. This is a hands-on, working session focused on what you can do right now. RSVP here (location will be provided upon RSVP).
- When: Wednesday, April 15 · 7–8:30 PM · 323 E 18th St
- Where: 232 East 18th St.
Learn to Be a Court Accompaniment Volunteer - See April dates below
New Sanctuary Coalition is seeking volunteers to support immigrants at court hearings—providing vital information, presence, and solidarity while holding the system accountable. Whether meeting someone for the first time or accompanying them through the process, this work sends a powerful message: we see what’s happening, and we stand together.
Upcoming trainings:
• Thursday, April 9, 7 PM – Brooklyn Friends Meeting (in person). Sign up here.
• Monday, April 13, 7 PM – Online. Sign up here.
• Thursday, April 23, 6 PM – Brooklyn Friends Meeting (in person). Sign up here.
• Monday, April 27, 7 PM – Online. Sign up here.
All U.S. citizens are welcome; non-citizens should consult a lawyer before participating. New Sanctuary Coalition is especially in need of bilingual individuals and faith leaders, so if you know anyone who fits this category, please refer them to the Get Involved page on our website.
New York State AG Federal Action Reporting Form
A statewide form to report federal government activity in New York that may violate residents’ rights, including ICE actions, workplace raids, or detentions.
Submitting a report does not initiate a lawsuit or individual representation, but it allows the Attorney General’s office to track and investigate patterns of federal overreach.
➡️ Federal Action Reporting Form here
Volunteer Opportunities
ROCC NYC
Connects newly arrived and vulnerable immigrants with shelter, school enrollment, legal representation, and health coverage. Operates a mobile food pantry and community meals in Hell’s Kitchen.
Volunteer opportunities: Food distribution, translation, and service navigation.
HIAS (NYC Office)
Provides legal and social support to refugees, asylum-seekers, and immigrants—from legal aid to ESL tutoring.
Volunteer opportunities: Mentoring, interpreting, tutoring, and asylum accompaniment.
New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC)
A coalition supporting immigrant communities through advocacy and on-the-ground programs.
Volunteer opportunities: Community outreach, translation, legal clinic assistance, event logistics.
Cabrini Immigrant Services of NYC
Provides food, clothing, and essentials for immigrants across NYC.
Volunteer opportunities: Organizing and distributing pantry items, helping with donation logistics.
Donations Needed for Asylum Seekers
The attacks on immigrant communities continue, from raids on workplaces to ICE detentions in NYC immigration courts. The administration is now charging new, exorbitant fees just to apply for asylum—$550 for work authorization and $100 for asylum, plus $100 annually while applications are pending. These costs are beyond the reach of most asylum seekers.
Clinics supporting these individuals are urgently seeking donations to cover the new fees for their participants. If you’d like to help asylum seekers here in NYC as they try to work and raise their families safely, please consider a donation to one of the following organizations.
Questions: [email protected]
Asylum Support Clinic (ASC)
Donations to ASC supported 21 asylum seekers in filing work authorization applications in August; they now need to cover work permit and asylum fees for 28 more participants.
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Or send a tax-deductible gift through Rutgers Presbyterian Church or by check to Rutgers Presbyterian Church, 236 West 73rd St., NY, NY 10023 (note “ASC” in the memo field).
The Ark Immigration Clinic (at Congregation Beit Simchat Torah)
A respected asylum and work authorization clinic helping LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and others start new lives in NYC.
Community Safety & Solidarity
In Chicago, activists have adopted a simple, non-violent alert system: plastic whistles to warn neighbors when ICE or CBP agents appear. The whistles rally crowds, document arrests, and help deter intimidation—an idea that may spread to other cities. Read more: How Plastic Whistles Became an Anti-ICE Resistance Tool (Reuters, Oct. 23, 2025)