September 2026 FLPIR Newsletter
Stop Detention Centers in Dublin & Gilroy: Together we can make a difference!
Urgent: Lawyers and Law Students Needed to Help with Habeas Appeals
(From Centro Legal de La Raza)
Centro Legal is receiving an unprecedented number of asylum interview notices for our clients who came to the U.S. as unaccompanied children, and we believe this is part of a coordinated effort to place as many of these clients as possible into removal (i.e. deportation) proceedings.
We'll be presenting a 90-minute virtual "Asylum 101" training on September 8 at 1 pm, which also will be recorded. We will then send additional materials for self-study after the training.
If you're an attorney or law student interested in participating in this project, please complete this survey no later than September 3.
Please share this information with any attorneys and/or law students who may be able to help!
Update on Maureen Wanjiru Ngure
Thank you to everyone who has made calls and sent email on behalf of Maureen Wanjiru Ngure, a nurse from Contra Costa County, who was detained by Homeland Security on 8/14/26 after she went to an ICE check-in at 630 Sansome St. in San Francisco.
DHS attempted to deport Maureen to a third country, which was halted at the last minute. Maureen is still being held in the Richwood Detention Center in Monroe, LA. Her wallet, ID and phone were all “lost” by DHS.
Maureen’s lawyer in Louisiana has submitted an official request to DHS to release Maureen on her own recognizance for voluntary departure from the U.S. Additional lawyers across the country are providing information and counsel to Maureen's lawyer in Louisiana.
As a result of the numerous calls and letters they have received, staff members working for Sen. Schiff and Rep. De Saulnier’s office have expressed concern for her case and have initiated a search for Maureen’s belongings which were “lost” by DHS.
Please continue to call and e-mail Sen. Padilla, Sen. Schiff, and Rep. De Saulnier requesting their support for Maureen’s immediate release. For more information on Maureen’s case, see our Urgent Action appeal 8/26/26.
Thank you again for joining in this effort to free Maureen.
Senator Alex Padilla padilla.senate.gov
D.C. (202) 224-3553
S.F. (415) 981-9369
Senator Adam Schiff schiff.senate.gov
D.C. (202) 224-3841
S.F. (415) 393-0707
Union Nurses are Activated for Maureen!
National Nurses United for Maureen Wanjiru Ngure. Our Urgent Appeal letter is being distributed NOW to thousands of Kaiser Nurses on Kaiser picket lines across California. Nurses are being asked to call and write their elected officials and to share with colleagues and other nurses. Thank you National Nurses United!
Support Immigration Bills in the CA State Legislature (From Bay Resistance)
ICE is quietly expanding its deportation machine, and it is happening at a staggering scale. Last month alone, ICE abducted nearly 50,000 people, more than any other month under this regime.
California has the power to make it harder for corporations to profit from separating families.
Urge your legislators to support critical bills in the We Are California 2026 Policy Platform, including:
AB 1633: Imposes a 50% tax on private detention centers, undermining their ability to operate in California.
AB 2465: Stops California taxpayer dollars from flowing to companies that profit from detention and family separation.
Contact your legislators today and demand they support policies that prioritize people over billionaires, protecting our freedoms, and keeping families together.
Email your legislators through our state partner, We Are California
Canvassing in Dublin
IF THEY BUILD IT, ICE WILL FILL IT (From Bay Resistance)
ICE detains more people in the areas where they have detention centers. If we let FCI Dublin reopen as an immigrant detention center or Gilroy as a processing center, ICE will escalate its violent arrests and family separations in our neighborhoods.
Canvass with the ICE Out of Dublin Coalition on September 5 and September 12, from 3–6 PM.
We'll talk with Dublin neighbors and businesses about the proposed ICE detention site at the former FCI Dublin Women’s Prison, listen to the people closest to it, and organize together to stop it from opening.
Once you RSVP, you'll receive meeting location and logistics details.
Stand with Gilroy against ICE by Participating in These Actions:
Tuesday, Sept. 8 at 1:30 p.m.
Rally at the Federal Courthouse in San Jose, 280 South 1st Street
California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Santa Clara County have filed litigation against the federal government over environmental and zoning violations in an attempt to halt the construction of the proposed Immigration Detention Processing Center. The case will be heard on Sept. 8.
Sunday, September 27 from 3–4 PM 7240 Holsclaw Road, Gilroy
Join the ICE Out of Gilroy Freedom Vigil to protest plans for a new ICE facility and stand with our neighbors facing detention and deportation. The vigil takes place on the fourth Sunday of each month at the site where the proposed Detention Center will be located.
A report from Gilroy vigil against proposed Detention Center
On August 30, over 60 faith leaders and community members gathered under a large shade tree in front of the site where ICE plans to build the proposed Gilroy Detention Processing Center. The 26-acre site, which is blocked off by chained-link fencing and keep-out signs, is located among fields of garlic, cabbage, peppers, and corn on unincorporated agricultural land on the outskirts of Gilroy, a town with a majority Latino population.
One of the speakers read a letter from a Gilroy resident describing how residents are living in fear and are afraid to take their children to soccer games, go to the grocery store, or go to doctor appointments. They fear that if the Detention Center is built, they will be in even greater danger.
Then the organizers read the names of everyone who has died in ICE custody since the beginning of the Trump administration while community members placed flowers on the altar. Community members pledged to do everything they can to stop the Detention Center from being built.
The event was sponsored by Santa Cruz Interfaith Network, PACT (People Acting in Community Together), ICE Out of the Bay Coalition, Santa Cruz Welcoming Network, and Your Allied Rapid Response.
Join Interfaith Court Vigils At ICE - SF & Concord
Date & time: Recurring Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays; specific times via link below
Locations: SF: 100 Montgomery AND 630 Sansome Street;
Concord: 1855 Gateway Blvd
ICE Immigration Courts have become sites of fear and danger for many immigrants simply trying to access due process. Join us in creating a sacred corridor of hope, connection, and beloved community, right outside the courtroom doors. Join the Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity and others to provide comfort, song, presence and support. Various roles are available to participants..
Use this link to get more information, sign up & view calendars.
VOLUNTEER Opportunities with North Star Network: Quaker-run organization assists individual immigrants living in the U.S. to emigrate to Canada or Spain. Long waiting list of immigrants wishing to receive this free legal support and choice. Founded by Quaker Immigration lawyers who provide training, counsel and mentoring to Counselors.
Counselor training includes weekly follow-up sessions. Counselors meet immigrants 1:1 on zoom, to assess eligibility for specific legal pathways to Canada or Spain. If you are interested in becoming a NSN Counselor, complete Volunteer application on website: https://thenorthstarnetwork.com
Become a FLPIR volunteer! Help us protect our neighbors and make a difference!
Give out and explain Know Your Rights cards
Outreach to businesses
Join “Court Watch” and “Welcome Navigator” programs
Adopt a Corner
Help with FLPIR events
Summons
Last night I dreamed
ten thousand grandmothers
from the twelve hundred corners of the earth
walked out into the gap
one breath deep
between the bullet and the flesh
between the bomb and the family.
They told me we cannot wait for governments.
There are no peacekeepers boarding planes.
There are no leaders who dare to say
every life is precious, so it will have to be us.
They said we will cup our hands around each heart.
We will sing the earth’s song, the song of water,
a song so beautiful that vengeance will turn to weeping.
The mourners will embrace, and grief replace
every impulse toward harm.
Ten thousand is not enough, they said,
so, we have sent this dream, like a flock of doves
into the sleep of the world. Wake up. Put on your shoes.
You who are reading this, I am bringing bandages
and a bag of scented guavas from my trees. I think
I remember the tune. Meet me at the corner.
Let’s go.
-Aurora Levin Morales
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