The Right to Remain in Safety: The Impact of Community Leadership on Philadelphia's ICE Holds Policy

This article examines how community-led advocacy shaped Philadelphia’s policy on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainers. Focusing on the efforts of the Philadelphia Family Unity Network and other immigrant-rights organizations, the article argues that grassroots leadership was instrumental in securing and preserving a policy prohibiting compliance with ICE detainers. By centering the experiences of immigrant communities most affected by detention and deportation, advocates successfully reframed local debates about public safety, immigration enforcement, and community rights. The article concludes that community leadership played a critical role in achieving lasting policy change and offers a model for immigrant justice advocacy in other jurisdictions.[This abstract was written by Microsoft Copilot, a generative artificial intelligence.]