Festivals and fairs flooded Germantown this past weekend, inviting Northwest Philly neighbors to connect through the arts. And while there was much fun to be had, some neighbors had other plans.

“We need to be in community,” said one of those neighbors. “It gives us strength, and I think it gives us the courage to do what needs to be done.”

That neighbor was East Mt. Airy’s Chuck McNabb, one of many who filled the pews of First United Methodist Church of Germantown (FUMCOG) on late Sunday afternoon, Oct. 26, with one common goal: to explore ways they could support immigrant neighbors affected by today’s social and political climate — particularly those detained.

Another view of neighbors filling FUMCOG’s sanctuary to see how they can support migrant neighbors and families. (Photo: Rasheed Z. Ajamu)

Neighbors sought solutions and support through an event, entitled “Immigrants Under Siege: Taking Action,” organized by The Northwest Regional Refugee & Immigrant Network (NWRRIN).

Five-year Germantown resident Heather Marie Scholl echoed McNabb’s sentiments, saying these are opportunities to “build stronger communities and figure out how we show up for each other rather than be isolated like the trend has become.”

Among the guests was State Senator Art Haywood, who, along with local clergy, has started prayer vigils in front of the Philadelphia ICE office located at 114 N. 8th Street. These non-violent vigils take place every Monday from 11 AM to 12 noon and are open to anyone who wishes to attend.

Background on NWRRIN and Sunday’s Event

The year-old coalition of NW Philly neighbors seeks to provide support and resources to refugees and immigrants and to ensure that foreign-born people are treated with dignity and respect.

It’s a volunteer-led organization, where neighbors provide a range of support from transitional housing to ESL training. Judith Bernstein-Baker, Esq., in collaboration with the Newcomer Housing Alliance and Welcoming Homes, facilitated the group’s founding.

She shed light on the urgency around founding the group.

“As we watched the cruelty and violence being perpetuated against immigrants, we realized, instead of wallowing in despair, it was time to come together with front-line advocates to visibly show multi-level public support of our neighbors in an ongoing way.”

She adds that the current treatment of immigrants reflects a larger crisis, pointing to the recent H.R.1 bill, which allocates $45 billion to expand ICE detention capacity, plus $29.85 billion for ICE enforcement and removal operations.

Sunday’s event was just one display of how these neighbors organize. For this, it was a compilation of panels, where folks got to hear about what’s happening to immigrant families across the country, at the local and national levels, and also hear about what local community response organizations are doing.

Attendees also received an update on local chef and Laotian refugee Anou Vongbandith, who, despite being granted bond the Wednesday prior, was still sitting in the Moshannon Valley Processing Center at the time of this event.

During the after-panel reception, neighbors could interact with smaller resource tables that, after hearing how they could be involved, would be the next step in activating themselves for their most vulnerable neighbors.

In his opening remarks, the program’s facilitator, Rev. Greg Holston of Just Nation, said folks gathered under the premise of uplifting and protecting diversity.

“It’s why we’re here today — to hear these issues about immigration and to see where we can help, knowing that we’re standing together because all of us, all of us, all of us together can build a congregation that will be as wonderful as it has promised to be.”

He also made it clear that the attacks on immigrant families are undoubtedly “a race issue.”

Kicking off the event and lending their respective local and national insights on what they’re seeing, as legal representatives, the panel included Executive Director of The Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), Anna Marie Gallagher, Esq., and Supervising Attorney at Nationalities Service Center (NSC), Lilah Thompson, Esq.

National Perspective: Legal Representation Crisis

(From L-R) Supervising Attorney at Nationalities Service Center (NSC), Lilah Thompson, Esq., and Executive Director of The Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), Anna Marie Gallagher, Esq., on the local and national perspectives panel. (Photo: Rasheed Z. Ajamu)

Gallagher quickly made the national problem clear: a legal representation crisis for immigrant families. “There is still a huge need for access,” Gallagher said.

She shared some background to help folks get a clearer picture.

“… just two years ago, 31% of immigrants had access to representation. So [almost] 70% didn’t. In 2024, the number dropped under 20%… And then there’s a study, for example, 74% of non-detained immigrants who had legal counsel were successful. [Almost] 75% successful because they had legal counsel. Detained [cases] canceled, three percent of the success rate because they don’t have access.”

What helps keep these crises fueled? Overwhelmed legal aid. Gallagher shared that there is one legal worker tasked with serving an average of 1,400 clients. She says even with CLINIC serving half a million in 2024, it’s still “a drop in the bucket.”

Aside from this, she said there are still limited pathways for families, not enough immigration judges, and, oftentimes, ICE attorneys (opposing counsel) don’t have a thorough understanding of immigration law.

There’s also a “crumbling backlog asylum system,” Gallagher shared, that shifted what used to be an 18-month adjudication time period to now “five, six, seven years” of waiting.

All of these make for harsher circumstances and choices, including self-deportation.

She sets the stage for part of the local perspective, lending fact to a nationwide discussion, often run on opinion: “the issue of being in the United States, undocumented, is not illegal.”

Though she said “illegal” is a term that often slips, these folks mustn’t be seen as perpetrators of crime, as this is a civil offense, not a criminal one.

Local Perspective: Detention Increases

Giving a closer look at how things appear at a tighter view, Thompson examined the city and state demographics of folks undoubtedly affected by the current crisis.

“[In the] Philadelphia [metro] area, we have about 718,500 immigrants who reside… It’s [over] 12% of the Philadelphia population. About 1 million immigrants reside in Pennsylvania, which is about eight percent of the total population. Two in nine children in Philly have an immigrant parent, and one in six children in Pennsylvania have at least one immigrant parent.”

Thompson also makes it clear: “Children are being detained!”

She affirms Gallagher’s perspective that more legal representation is needed, as she continues to see more and more people detained through her work with NSC.

She clarifies why this is becoming a bigger problem: “This government is prioritizing every single person for detention. We’ve had a massive shift from prioritizing certain individuals for enforcement and detention and targeting every single person.”

Under these incentives, the increase in detentions is happening at things like asylum hearings or even regularly scheduled check-ins.

This means that folks who are taking all the “right” (as often labeled by society) steps towards pathways of permanency in the United States are not only being denied access, but are also being fundamentally made into criminals — a lore that has become all too familiar in Germantown.

Because of this, Thompson notes that ICE detentions of non-criminal immigrants rose sharply in 2025, from about 850 in January to 13,653 by July, and have continued since then.

Conditioning and Conditions — Outside and In

Conditions of what Thompson calls “immigration prisons” (detention centers) help underscore the by-design rebranding of good-standing citizens into what some would deem “illegal criminals.”

Take Moshannon Valley Processing Center, for example. As Thompson describes, there’s barbed wire, tall fences, and more that would make anyone within the circumference of the area assume immediate caution.

But, as Thompson makes clear, within are “individuals who are proceeding in civil proceedings. These are not people with criminal records.” And “even if they have criminal records, they’re being doubly punished.”

So why the hard exterior, one might ask? Thompson gives a brief history of the building, connecting it to its current operations.

“This facility was actually a former Bureau of Prisons facility… It is of extremely high security. And all of the guards who work at that facility were prior guards through GEO Group, the same company that owns it now at the prison.”

Thompson plugged a report created by Temple Law students, entitled “In The Shadow of the Valley,” for neighbors to learn more about the center’s history and conditions.

The report documents some specific patterns and incidents, including solitary confinement for minor infractions, group violence, racist abuse by staff, medical neglect, women’s health and hygiene barriers, language access failures, and even overcrowding during illness.

Anh Vongbandith echoed harsh conditions at the Moshannon, where her husband, Anou, sits: “The reality is harsh. You aren’t given enough food to survive. Beans and rice twice a day… Chicken maybe once or twice a month. Sometimes fights break out because it’s simply not enough food. They deserve better. My husband deserves better.”

The Supervising Attorney also reminded attendees that bond laws have changed, meaning that folks who entered the United States without inspection cannot now ask for bond, regardless of subsequent circumstances or outcomes, such as being paroled or released on recognizance.

Happening on the ground and what you can do

(From L-R) Co-Director of the New Sanctuary Movement, Blanca Pacheco, Executive Director of Asian Pacific Islander Political Alliance (APIPA), Mohan Seshadri, SEIU 32BJ representative, Lance Biggs, and African Family Health Organization’s Elizabeth Porter on the community response panel. (Photo: Rasheed Z. Ajamu)

Amongst a crowd of four on the second panel of the afternoon were African Family Health Organization’s Elizabeth Porter, SEIU 32BJ representative, Lance Biggs, Executive Director of Asian Pacific Islander Political Alliance (APIPA), Mohan Seshadri, and Co-Director of the New Sanctuary Movement, Blanca Pacheco.

These community leaders gathered to discuss the work they are doing on the ground to support immigrant families during this time of crisis. Catherine Miller Wilson of the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society facilitated the conversation.

Across organizations, there was a pattern of similar actions happening, including:

Know Your Rights outreaching
Conducting business canvassing and local community education
Building and expanding ICE watch groups and rapid response networks
Promoting voter registration and political engagement to influence local and state immigration policy

Porter says this work is more important than ever, as they are seeing the effects of lost funding as social service programs are disappearing more rapidly.

“We will continue to do that work even though our community members are afraid,” Porter said to the crowd. “We are going to meet them where they are.”

32BJ’s Biggs also brought up the importance of developing strategies to counter misinformation and narrative manipulation about immigrants through media and community storytelling.

He said: “I say a lot of time that migrant crime is the new Black-on-Black crime. The narrative is that they are eating dogs and cats… that they are rapists and murderers. So, for us, directly and loudly opposing that narrative is not just part of it, it’s essential.”

Biggs feels the goal of these raids and detentions isn’t just to get rid of people, but it’s ultimately to instill fear. “So telling my story, encouraging others to tell their stories, and for those of us who don’t have that story, actually telling it for people,” he said.

Alongside this, panelists also made the following recommendations to NW neighbors: give money, know their rights, and get involved as calls to action.

Anna Marie Gallagher also emphasized at the beginning of the panel that showing up for folks when it matters counts more than folks imagine — especially religious congregations.

“It makes a difference,” she said. “And what we’re seeing when they go with people into the courts is that an immigration judge is continuing the case, and they are not detained. So you all have a superpower.”

To learn more about how to get involved with NWRRIN, please send questions to nwrefugeeandimmigrant@gmail.com.