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About This Resource Library
About This Resource Library
As a supplement to our introductory guide to ICE preparedness for cultural heritage workers, CHAACo has collected guidance and resources from legal associations, professional peers, civil rights nonprofits, and advocacy groups. The ones we have chosen to feature here are particularly relevant to cultural heritage workers and cultural organizations or stand out for their high quality, unique content, or accessibility.
Wherever possible we direct readers to the author's original hosted resources and give author credit, links to author websites, and publication dates, or our best guess for undated resources to help readers understand how up to date they may be. Please contact us if your original work is featured here and you want to be credited differently.
Notice: This content is not legal advice for you or your organization, just a starting point. Work with a lawyer to find answers specific to your organization, location, and legal situation.
Updated February 19, 2026
Help us improve this library! We're especially looking for guidance specific to museums, cultural centers, and performing arts organizations; any anonymized examples of relevant policies that can serve as a template; and updated guidance as our national situation evolves. Let us know if you have other high-quality, relevant resources or are interested in partnering with us to develop guides that do not yet exist. Contact us.
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For specific kinds of organizations & cultural workers
For specific kinds of organizations & cultural workers
Understand the roles and unique strengths, vulnerabilities, and obligations of libraries, museums, universities, nonprofits, and other cultural heritage organizations with respect to immigrants and immigration enforcement. These resources include tips for organizing and preparing your workplace. The library resources are a great starting point for anyone with public programming, including museums.
CHAACo is on the lookout for guidance for cultural centers and performing arts organizations.
English • Spanish
Includes more than FAQs!
Information for employers and managers about immigration enforcement, I-9 audits, writing and implementing workplace policies, templates for policies, tips for practicing interactions with ICE, and more.
Link to Spanish variant version
January 2025
English
A guide with nonprofit-relevant FAQs and samples of valid warrants.
Note: the discussion of laws and rights is specific to the state of New York, in which New York City is a legislated sanctuary zone. Much of the information here is broadly applicable to the rest of the US, or you can compare to your own laws with legal counsel.
https://www.nylpi.org/resource/guidance-to-nonprofits-regarding-immigration-enforcement/
Update published September 2025
English
Actionable guidance for workers at public libraries to organize and prepare for community solidarity and safety.
Many suggestions, including a script for how to start conversations about these topics in the workplace, are excellent and easily adaptable to museum and cultural center workers and others.
Related to the Protocols for Higher Education Workers, below.
English
Actionable guidance for workers at all levels of a university/higher ed institution, especially library workers, to prepare for community solidarity and safety.
Many suggestions, including a script for how to start conversations about these topics in the workplace, are excellent and easily adaptable to museum and cultural center workers and others.
Related to the Protocols for Public Library Workers, above.
Undated, posted July 2025English
A webinar panel discussion on the responsibilities and opportunities of museums to take new actions in the face of increased immigration enforcement operations in the US. Panelists: Leticia Rhi Buckley, Rose Paquet & Gretchen Jennings.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFmwrwMStGI
September 25, 2025English
← Summary and reflections on the webinar of the same name, with tips on community solidarity and preparedness from the speakers.
https://gretchenjennings.substack.com/p/how-museums-can-stand-up-to-ice
October 7, 2025English
An essay on the responsibility of museums to stand in solidarity with immigrant communities, and what that can look like.
https://gretchenjennings.substack.com/p/community-care-how-museums-can-respond
August 15, 2025For employers, managers, and safety committee members
For employers, managers, and safety committee members
General information about developing a workplace preparedness plan for immigration enforcement actions and your rights. Prepare for I-9 audits, ICE raids, protecting your workers and visitors, and more.
As with any workplace safety and emergency planning, preparing before ICE shows up will help you, your staff, and your organization limit immediate negative effects and recover more quickly and completely.
These resources are organized with concise overviews first, progressing to more detailed or technical guidance.
As part of your preparedness work, be sure to check out our sections on Rapid Response and Signage, handouts, and simple guides for distribution, below.
English
Clear, basic legal informational guidance for employers from a Pennsylvania-based law firm, with a list of recommended actions to take before, during, and after ICE visits.
https://www.babstcalland.com/news-article/employer-guidance-for-workplace-interactions-with-ice/
Updated July 11, 2025English
Simple guidance with easy-to-read tips on the difference between public and private spaces, how to authenticate a judicial warrant, what to do and not to do when ICE comes in, among other things.
MIRAC has compiled several other guides like this and a booklet-format printable version of this guide, available in this Google Drive folder.
PDF version for digital viewingUndated, likely 2025 or early January 2026English • Spanish • Chinese
Korean • Thai
Easy-to-digest webpage and downloadable pamphlet of information, action plans, and checklists for employers preparing for a visit from ICE, whether an audit or a raid.
December 2017English • Spanish
Includes more than FAQs!
Information for employers and managers about immigration enforcement, I-9 audits, writing and implementing workplace policies, templates for policies, tips for practicing interactions with ICE, and more.
(Yes, this is a repeat from the first section—it's that relevant!)
Link to Spanish variant version
January 2025Rapid response
Rapid response
Get prepared to respond effectively and safely when ICE is in your neighborhood. A workplace or community that has built relationships, planned, and practiced will fare better and recover more quickly than one that is unprepared.
If you weren't prepared and got caught up in an ICE operation, there's help here for you, too!
English
A 2-page overview of steps to take to prepare a community for ICE raids.
https://www.nilc.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/immraidsprep.pdf
Updated July 2019English
A toolkit with overviews and detailed guidance for preparing for ICE raids and detentions, as well as a fill-in-the-blank guide to building a comprehensive ICE emergency response plan and team. Great starting point.
https://www.cliniclegal.org/toolkits/rapid-response-toolkit
November 9, 2024Many tips for preparedness, as well as guidance for organizations who have just been hit with an ICE raid: what to expect now, how to find help, whom to contact, understanding the needs of your staff's family members, organizing volunteers, and more.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/15GSyx2d5dtg0Oc6QrAdpYKEzv_MyytBS/view
May 2019Know Your Rights information
Know Your Rights information
It is important for everyone to be confident in their knowledge of their constitutional and legal rights, as well as what risks they may experience in any interaction with ICE or law enforcement.
This administration has threatened to strip museums of their nonprofit status over their speech, but nonprofits and workers have First Amendment rights! Learn what "political" speech and topics you can discuss freely, and be prepared to defend yourself from censorship and intimidation.
English • Spanish
ACLU is a great one-stop source for easy-to-understand information on your civil rights. This page features primers on various civil rights issues.
Spanish • English
From NDLON, a Spanish-first guide to knowing your rights, with Q&A-style advice for what to do in various scenarios, helpful videos, and other resources for grassroots education and organizing for community defense.
https://conocetusderechos.org/
English
An informational guide from a law firm with definitions and explanations of permissible and restricted political speech, advocacy, and more, according to IRS rules for nonprofit organizations.
You have the right to advocate on issues and fight for justice! Just be careful not to wade into candidates' campaigns.
September 17, 2024English
This guide explains the differences between judicial warrants and subpoenas, and administrative/immigration warrants and subpoenas, used by immigration agents to demand access to documents, spaces, or people.
Learn what each authorizes, how and when you must comply, what you don't have to do, and how to recognize and verify each.
https://www.nilc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/2025-Subpoenas-Warrants_.pdf
January 2025English • Some materials in Spanish, Arabic, Urdu, Bengali, and Farsi
The NLG, a law association that offers training on mass defense, acknowledges that just because you have rights doesn't mean government agents respect them. This guide is a clear explanation of the real risks you might run when interacting with law enforcement or protesting government policy.
https://www.nlg.org/know-your-risks/
Updated 2025 in English; booklets from 2015 available in a few languages; updated versions "coming soon".Signage, handouts, and simple guides for distribution
Signage, handouts, and simple guides for distribution
Links for printable and purchasable signs, Know Your Rights cards (KYR), flyers and brochures about protecting democratic rights, and more. Distribute materials to your staff and/or post them at reception desks for visitors with instructions to take some.
If you are looking for something else, note that many companies, such as hardware supply stores, sell a wide array of privacy signage for business use, or you can order a sign with custom text or develop your own signage or business cards through various online services.
Note: Many materials you find may have a helpful phone number or aid group listed, but those are probably LOCAL or STATEWIDE only because of limitations on legal aid (lawyers must have a state-issued license to practice law and give legal advice there). Be sure to check and update any resource you are distributing to feature locally relevant aid information!
English • Spanish
Many organizations have produced one or two sign styles available to print for the workplace. We have collected files and links to several in this Google Drive folder, as well as guidance for where it is appropriate and useful to post these signs. Some are generic "Private Area" or "Employees Only" signs; others explicitly exclude ICE.
If these aren't what you want, many companies such as hardware supply stores sell a wide array of privacy signage for business use.
Note: if any areas of your business are open to the public, ICE can enter those spaces without a judicial warrant. A sign doesn't change that.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/17dBrse5bJT68mqp1KWs6F7V_DV7lWLDf?usp=drive_link
English
A template for a flyer to hand out to event attendees to advise them about the institution's ICE response protocols so everyone is prepared for an operation at your site.
It also can be adapted into a worksheet for developing your ICE presence response protocols, as well as into a staff instruction memo, a handout for gallery visitors, and even content for a notice to post on walls.
October 2025
English • Spanish
A trove of workplace solidarity and procedure signs, workplace know-your-rights guidance, bystander instructions, and more, with exceptional infographic design.
Some are universally applicable and ready-to-use. Some are designed for the city of Pomona, CA—you can use these as a model for your own effective communications.
Note: Be sure to use locally relevant aid information on your own resources!
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1QxMHL0ERgUiymcipNbnCtF-ehP9Z3lSZ
Also check out IOP's Instagram account for more useful infographics:
https://www.instagram.com/iceoutofpomona
56 languages
Wallet-sized cards to hand to an ICE agent during interactions to assert your constitutional rights. One side has instructions for the holder, and the other a statement to the agent.
This free, printable template is available in many languages, with English used for the statement to ICE agents.
56 languages for cards ordered free through nonprofit form
18 languages, if purchased from the printer
← Professionally printed cards with the same information as the printable templates.
Immigrant-serving nonprofits and public defenders can request modest orders for free. (Note: as of Feb. 2026 there is a backlog due to high demand.) Other organizations can order straight from the printer; fees help subsidize the free cards.
English • Spanish
An illustrated guide to worker rights and responsibilities in the workplace, especially concerning ICE. An accessible and friendly way to communicate rights and workplace policies.
Share it with your workplace, peers, or neighbors.
Published by NDLON, but original source not found.
English • Spanish
Two sign styles, one KYR sign alerting everyone to their constitutional rights, and one "Everyone is welcome here—except ICE" sign indicating that you will assert your rights if ICE comes by. Available in two languages and different printing formats.
https://www.ilrc.org/community-resources/know-your-rights/solidarity-signs
English
Great basic calls to action in a convenient-to-print trifold flyer. Empower people to know their rights, understand what works, stand up for democracy, and engage in nonviolent community protection.
Note: Includes whistle codes used in Seattle.
English • Spanish • Chinese
Printable guides to teach people whistle protocols for rapid response. This is a repository of state-specific and other printable whistle protocols, including a flyers, zines, a poster, and even 3D printing instructions for making whistles.
Codes may vary regionally, but generally, short repeated blasts = ICE nearby; long blasts = someone is being detained.
Note: the main editable resources, such as this flyer, have an Illinois aid phone number. Be sure to update the contact info to a locally relevant aid organization!
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1zXBmpznTPPA1BiiWdvwE9w6R_lcA6zN9?usp=drive_link
Legal aid
Legal aid
A few sources of legal advice for low-income individuals, and others on immigration law, civil rights, and nonprofit and business law, civil law generally, and hotlines for people who need urgent legal help. Additional information can be found in the section Other notable resource repositories, below.
Note: To the best of our knowledge, there are currently no nationwide hotlines for help with ICE or legal issues, since lawyers must be licensed to work within each state. If the resources below don't meet your needs, look online for resources local to your city or state. Search for law associations, legal nonprofits, immigrant aid organizations, and civil rights advocacy groups.
English
A progressive law association, NLG advocates for expanded civil rights and protections for all. The main site offers training for legal observers, publishes resources for public education and community defense training, and maintains a referral directory to help you find a lawyer.
Some (not all) local chapters operate hotlines you can call for assistance, and others can help direct legal observers to you. Look up and save your local hotline in your phone contacts.
12 languages
A database for finding immigration legal services providers by state, county, or detention facility. Only nonprofit organizations that provide free or low-cost immigration legal services are included in this directory.
https://www.immigrationadvocates.org/nonprofit/legaldirectory/
English
A sponsored legal advice program for low-income individuals. Eligible individuals can write with a civil legal question and expect a response from a lawyer licensed in your state; federal questions are also fielded. Responses can generally be expected in a few days. About 40 states and territories currently have participating programs.
Other notable resource repositories
Other notable resource repositories
Collections of information, templates, signage, and more.
English, some Spanish
A trove of documents for workplace preparedness, including safety plan templates, signage, and legal information.
Notably also includes significant personal/family preparedness guides, including child guardianship forms, family emergency planning, guidance on how to locate and support someone who has been detained, and more.
Note: these are tailored for the state of California. Be sure to look up your local equivalents for legal aid, documents, and contact information.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1fGU3nr9DL3tYguYfFAwJ1YgyIJdglh5_?usp=drive_link
Compiled in 2025Languages indicated on each
A spreadsheet of resources organized into the following tab topics for the entire United States:
Know Your Rights guides for various issues
Immigration Raid Help Hotlines by region
Detention Center locations
Locations of USCIS Asylum & Field Offices
Note: unclear if these have been kept up to date since 2019. Confirm that hotlines and locations are active.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1hBvZ6jrJTXHnSTqooho1WWojvWFQO4UN5PlP7YJoxyU/
Started in 2019English
The NLG Mass Defense Program is a network of community members and legal professionals advancing community preparedness to defend itself from oppression. They offer Legal Observer trainings and other guidance.
English, some Spanish or multilingual
Almost 200 documents with a good search filter: Know Your Rights information, legal guides, policy briefs, and more for the general public, for immigrants, and for immigration lawyers.
https://www.nilc.org/resources
Most published in 2025.English • Spanish
A library of over 100 resources focused on the needs of undocumented immigrants.
https://www.informedimmigrant.com/resources/
2016 - presentEnglish, some Spanish
A Google Drive folder with miscellaneous guides and resources. It includes links to other repositories and PDF copies of some resources featured here (but we encourage you to go to live websites where possible for their most up-to-date guidance).
There are additional resources we think will be helpful to some, such as thorough but locally focused guides and resource lists.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1wpfGPsAggb64AxkxjvyccbjCdvn0i_JC?usp=drive_link
Compiled from other sources 2025-2026Page updated
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