‘Know Your Rights’: Providence City Council to send ICE encounter informational mailer to every city household

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Providence City Council President Rachel Miller announced Wednesday that a “Know Your Rights” informational mailer will be sent to every household in the city, outlining how to respond to contact from immigration enforcement agents.

The mailer is in response to “the brutal and unconstitutional enforcement tactics currently being undertaken by the far-right federal administration,” according to a Facebook post from the Providence City Council.

The card contains instructions in both English and Spanish on how to respond to an encounter with ICE agents under the header “CITIZEN OR NOT: YOU HAVE CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS.”

The instructions urge residents to not open the door if ICE personnel knocks, not answer any questions or sign anything and to not physically resist arrest attempts by ICE.

It also emphasizes that it is against Providence police policy for city officers to assist with ICE operations that are not backed by a judicial warrant.

The post concludes:

By taking this unprecedented action to protect our immigrant communities, councilors are sending a clear message: every Providence resident has a right to lead a dignified life free from state-sponsored intimidation and terrorization.