U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detain an immigrant on Oct. 14, 2015, in Los Angeles.
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Topline:
It can be difficult to distinguish fact from rumor while you’re scrolling, especially when the news is concerning. We spoke to immigration experts and advocates about what to know about current ice operations in California and how to avoid sharing misinformation about ice raids yourself — even with the best of intentions.
Why it matters: Since the inauguration, social media posts about apparent ICE sightings have ramped up — bringing understandable concern and panic with them.
Where to start: Throughout California, there are networks of dedicated volunteers and attorneys who are responding to possible ICE activity around the clock.
Read on. . . for information on how to identify what ICE operations look like and what you can do when you encounter one.
Even before President Donald Trump took office for a second time, panic about his promised “mass deportations” — and raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) — was already spreading throughout California.
For example, in an early January operation unrelated to ICE, the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office served two search warrants related to retail theft. But photos of the vans used by the sheriff’s office began spreading on social media, accompanied by messages claiming that ICE was present and detaining people in East San José, where thousands of immigrant families live.
“People in the community were reaching out to me to ask me if this was true,” said Huy Tran, executive director of Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network (SIREN), an organization with offices in San José and Fresno that offers legal aid, trainings and leadership development to immigrant communities.
Throughout California, there are networks of dedicated volunteers and attorneys who are responding to possible ICE activity around the clock — called Rapid Response Networks. SIREN, for example, forms part of Santa Clara County Rapid Response Network, which, on Jan. 26, responded to reports from neighbors about ICE sightings in East San José. This time around, the Rapid Response Network confirmed that the rumors were true: ICE agents were indeed transferring individuals who had received deportation orders.
But it can be difficult to distinguish fact from rumor while you’re scrolling, especially when the news is concerning. We spoke to immigration experts and advocates about what to know about current ICE operations in California and how to avoid sharing misinformation about ICE raids yourself — even with the best of intentions.
ICE, fear and perception
In California, a state with roughly 2 million undocumented individuals, according to the Pew Research Center, advocates say Trump has been weaponizing fear, along with harsher enforcement of immigration policies.
“The federal government is more likely going to do the things that can get the Trump administration visibility,” said Lourdes Martínez, who helps lead the immigrants’ rights practice at Oakland legal services nonprofit Centro Legal de la Raza. “They only have to detain a few people for the fear to really reverberate.”
It’s normal to feel scared about ICE showing up in your community, said Tran from SIREN. “I understand the desire to want to do something, to share information right away,” he added.
But fear also makes it hard for people to sort bad information from good, and panic can lead folks to quickly share online posts without checking them out further. “Anxiety, fear, it spreads incredibly quickly,” Tran said. “When people send information out to these huge networks, it spreads far, wide and fast.”
Students and supporters of DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) rally in downtown Los Angeles on Nov. 12, 2019.
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What have ICE arrests looked like in Trump’s first days, and what is the focus?
But while Trump still said his administration would go ahead with mass deportations, officials appointed by him are being more careful with their words — laying emphasis, for now, on people with criminal convictions. “If you’re in the country illegally, ICE can visit you,” said Tom Homan, who Trump designated as “border czar.” “But right now … we’re concentrating on the worst first,” he clarified during an interview with Fox News on Wednesday. “The public safety threats.”
What should I do if I see an online post about ICE in the community?
The major takeaway: If you think you see ICE in your neighborhood or see ICE reported nearby on social media, advocates advise that you call them instead of circulating anything online.
Tran of SIREN explained further: Before posting anything, you should first reach out to your local Rapid Response Network — a coalition of volunteers, organizations and attorneys that work together to confirm ICE sightings and connect people who have been detained by ICE to legal representation.
It’s possible that the Rapid Response Network in your city has already checked out the reported ICE sighting you’re seeing on your feed — so by calling them, you can get information from folks who are at the scene. You could also be alerting them to an ICE sighting that isn’t already on their radar.
San Francisco community organization Mission Action urged people to avoid sharing unverified information, with Executive Director Laura Valdez saying that such rumors “can unnecessarily heighten fear and confusion” and that communities should trust Rapid Response Networks to “verify reports and share clear, actionable updates.”
Google’s reverse image search can be a quick way to see where a photo has been used on the internet. For example, an image purporting to show a recent “ICE raid” could be, in fact, an archive image from another year entirely. However, keep in mind that Google prioritizes its own AI results at the top of the page. Those results have been proven to sometimes be unreliable, inconsistent and even inappropriate, so it’s best if you actually visit the source through the links provided.
ICE agents can also wear civilian clothes or plain dark clothing with a bulletproof vest.
Police officers, however, usually wear a more specific-looking uniform “with identifying insignias,” ACLU SoCal said.
Q. What is the difference between ICE and CBP?
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, and Customs and Border Protection, CBP, are both immigration enforcement agencies within the Department of Homeland Security. ICE conducts enforcement within the U.S. and manages detention and deportation operations. CBP conducts inspections at all U.S. “ports of entry” – at land borders, seaports, and airports. And the Border Patrol, which is part of CBP, polices the land borders in between the official ports of entry.
ICE and CBP officers generally need an administrative warrant (signed by an ICE or CBP supervisor) in order to arrest a person. However they can make an arrest without a warrant if they see a person illegally entering the country, or they have “reason to believe” a person is here illegally and likely to escape before they can get a warrant.
You have more protections if the encounter happens when you are in your home. Under the Fourth Amendment, if ICE or CBP agents (or any law enforcement officer) comes to your door and wants to enter your home, they either need to present a warrant signed by a judge (not just an administrative warrant from their agency) – or they need your consent. Agents could also technically enter without permission if they report hearing an emergency happening inside the home.
If you don’t want the agent to come in, legal advocates say, you don’t have to open the door unless the agent shows you a judicial warrant. (Advocates suggest asking the agent to slide the warrant under the door or hold it up to a window where you can read it.)
Federal law grants additional powers to CBP within a wide border zone that the government has defined as 100 air miles from an “external boundary” of the U.S. Within that zone – which covers most coastal cities in the country, including San Francisco – CBP agents can stop and question people, and board vessels, buses and trains to search for unauthorized immigrants without a warrant.
That said, you do still have constitutional protections, including the right to remain silent so you don’t say something that could incriminate you. Immigration officers cannot detain you without “reasonable suspicion” of a crime, and they cannot search you or your belongings without “probable cause” – unless you give your consent.
KQED’s Tyche Hendricks and Samantha Lim contributed to this article.
President Donald Trump once insisted he had "nothing to do with Project 2025," the right-wing policy plan that became a key flashpoint during the presidential campaign. A year later, many of the policies have been implemented, from cracking down on immigration to dismantling the Department of Education.
What Trump said in 2024: Then-candidate Trump tried to dismiss the hysteria, calling the ideas "ridiculous" — and claiming he did not know who was behind it — even though key people involved in developing the plans served in his first administration. And when it was clear the firestorm would not go away, Trump went on the attack against those allies who wrote the playbook.
What he did after winning the election: Trump tapped Russell Vought, an architect of Project 2025, to lead the Office of Management and Budget — considered the nerve center of the White House. Other contributors followed. And Trump soon unleashed a flurry of orders reshaping the government, many of which were outlined in Project 2025.
Read on ... to learn how Democratic officials have responded.
President Trump once insisted he had "nothing to do with Project 2025," the right-wing policy plan that became a key flashpoint during the presidential campaign.
The Democrats tried to turn the 900-page Heritage Foundation-led blueprint to remake the government into a political boogeyman, and succeeded to some degree, but it wasn't enough to win the election.
A year later, many of the policies have been implemented, from cracking down on immigration to dismantling the Department of Education.
"A lot of the policies from Day 1 to the last day and in between that the administration has adopted are right out of Project 2025," said Rob Bonta, the attorney general of California, who has used Project 2025 to prepare legal papers against the administration.
Concerns about the project started to bubble up over the spring of 2024, but really caught fire a few months later when actress Taraji P. Henson singled out Project 2025 while hosting the BET awards.
"Pay attention. It's not a secret. Look it up!" she said, speaking directly into the camera during the show. "They are attacking our most vulnerable citizens. The Project 2025 plan is not a game."
'Ridiculous'
Then-candidate Trump tried to dismiss the hysteria, calling the ideas "ridiculous" — and claiming he did not know who was behind it — even though key people involved in developing the plans served in his first administration.
And when it was clear the firestorm would not go away, Trump went on the attack against those allies who wrote the playbook.
"They're a pain in the a--," said Chris LaCivita, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, who tore into the organizers of Project 2025 at an event hosted by CNN and Politico during the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
"Look, I think that in the perfect world, from their perspective, they would love to drive the issue set, but they don't get to do that," he added.
Yet days after winning, Trump tapped Russell Vought, an architect of Project 2025, to lead the Office of Management and Budget — considered the nerve center of the White House. Other contributors followed.
Trump soon unleashed a flurry of orders reshaping the government, many of which were outlined in Project 2025.
"As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female," he said during his inaugural address.
Trump ended diversity, equity and inclusion programs. He launched massive immigration enforcement and took the first steps to overhaul the federal workforce.
Bonta, the attorney general of California, said Project 2025 defined Trump's first year back in office. The country's 23 Democratic attorneys general studied Project 2025, consulted with each other and, he said, prepared a response for every potential action should it be taken.
"The existence of Project 2025 was the Trump administration telling us exactly what they were going to do and sending it to us in writing," Bonta said.
Bonta has filed or joined lawsuits that have successfully blocked Trump's policies requiring states like California to join his immigration crackdown, freeze of domestic federal funding and layoffs at agencies such as the U.S. Department of Education.
The White House dismissed concerns about Project 2025, calling them irrelevant theories from Beltway insiders.
"President Trump is implementing the agenda he campaigned on and that the American people voted for," said Abigail Jackson, a White House spokeswoman.
Jackson said the president focused on implementing the agenda he campaigned on — lowering gas prices, accelerating economic growth and securing the border.
Fueling controversy
Trump may have actually fueled the controversy by rejecting Project 2025 during the campaign, said Tevi Troy, a presidential historian and former White House aide to George W. Bush.
"I would say that Project 2025 was largely standard conservative fare, but with a bit more of a MAGA flavor than previously."
Troy sees little difference between what the Heritage Foundation did with Project 2025 and what think tanks on the left and right have been doing for years compiling policy proposals for incoming presidents.
He pointed to the personnel and policy ideas of the Hoover Institution that helped shape the George W. Bush administration and the Center for American Progress' influence on the Obama administration.
"If the Trump campaign had leaned into it and said, 'sure, this is an agenda that has been put out as a think tank. This happens all the time. We will look at them in due time when the election is over,' " said Troy. "By criticizing and disavowing Project 2025, it suddenly became more radioactive."
Paul Dans, the director of Project 2025, says he never took the attacks personally, which he chalked up to political calculus.
He likened watching the president sign executive orders and directives that first came across his desk to being an animator who watches his or her sketchbook come to life on the big screen.
"I believe the proof is in the pudding," said Dans, who also served in the first Trump administration. "Every day that President Trump rolls out another Project 2025 item, it's really an endorsement of our work, myself and the work of thousands of patriots who came together."
Dans is now highlighting that work in a run for the Senate, against Trump-ally, Republican Lindsey Graham.
Trump did eventually embrace Project 2025 during the shutdown fight last fall.
He boasted of meeting with "Russ Vought, he of PROJECT 2025 Fame," while threatening to dismantle federal agencies.
"I can't believe the Radical Left Democrats gave me this unprecedented opportunity," he said.
President Donald Trump says his controversial push for U.S. control of Greenland comes after he failed to win the Nobel Peace Prize last year, adding he no longer feels obliged to think only of peace.
U.S. president to Norway's leader: "Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace, although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America."
The response: The Norwegian prime minister suggested diplomacy and noted that his government does not control the Nobel prizes.
Read on ... for more about the latest turn of events in the Greenland saga.
President Trump says his controversial push for U.S. control of Greenland comes after he failed to win the Nobel Peace Prize last year, adding he no longer feels obliged to think only of peace.
In a message to Norway's prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre on Sunday night, Trump criticized the European country for not giving him the prize.
"Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace, although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America," Trump said in the message.
"The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland," Trump added.
The message was reported by PBS NewsHour, and was later confirmed by Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre in a statement.
Gahr Støre said he received the message on Sunday in response to a text he and Finland's President Alexander Stubb had sent to Trump, in which they had conveyed opposition to Trump's proposed tariff increases on eight European countries over the recent Greenland dispute.
In their message to Trump, according to The New York Times, which received a copy of the exchange from the Norwegian prime minister's office, Gahr Støre and Stubb wrote: "We believe we all should work to take this down and de-escalate — so much is happening around us where we need to stand together."
The pair suggested a joint call.
"Norway's position on Greenland is clear. Greenland is a part of the Kingdom of Denmark, and Norway fully supports the Kingdom of Denmark on this matter," Gahr Støre said. "We also support that NATO in a responsible way is taking steps to strengthen security and stability in the Arctic."
Gahr Støre also pointed out that while President Trump claimed that Norway "decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize," the government of Norway is not responsible for the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize. The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded by a five member Norwegian Nobel Committee since 1901.
The Danish navy's inspection ship HDMS Vaedderen sails off Nuuk, Greenland, on Sunday.
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The Peace Prize, which was last awarded to Venezuela's opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, is also awarded for the previous year. That means the most recent prize was awarded for 2024, before President Trump commenced his second term of office. Machado gave Trump her prize last week as a symbolic thank you for his recent actions in Venezuela.
In a phone interview with NBC News on Monday, Trump again claimed that the Norwegian government has control over the Nobel Peace Prize. "Norway totally controls it despite what they say," he said. Trump also said he would follow through on his threats to impose further tariffs. When asked whether he would use force to seize Greenland, the president replied: "No comment."
The European Union is set to hold an emergency summit on Thursday, in which attendees will discuss how to respond to the threats. In a statement on social media, the EU's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the bloc had "no interest to pick a fight" but would "hold our ground."
Trump's message to Gahr Støre comes as tensions rise between Europe and the United States over the status of Greenland, an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark that is strategically important and rich in resources.
On Monday, the World Economic Forum said officials from Denmark would not be attending the meeting in Davos, Switzerland, this week. "We can confirm that the Danish government will not be represented in Davos this week," a spokesperson, Alem Tedeneke, told NPR.
On Sunday, in a collective rebuke to President Trump, the leaders of Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom issued a joint statement condemning recent U.S. tariff threats. The eight countries, which are all members of NATO, said that Trump's proposed tariffs "undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral."
On Saturday night, President Trump had written on his Truth Social social media platform that he would impose tariffs on imports from the countries, after they had deployed limited military personnel to Greenland to participate in a Danish-led Arctic exercise known as 'Arctic Endurance.'
Trump said America would levy a 10% tariff on goods from the eight countries starting on Feb. 1, which would rise to 25% on June 1, and remain in place "until such time as a Deal is reached for the Complete and Total purchase of Greenland" by the United States.
The open dispute comes after weeks of increasingly assertive U.S. rhetoric regarding Greenland, in which Trump has repeatedly said that Greenland is strategically vital to U.S. national security, citing its location and untapped mineral deposits.
In his text message, Trump questioned Denmark's right to claim Greenland. "Denmark cannot protect that land from Russia or China, and why do they have a 'right of ownership' anyway? There are no written documents, it's only that a boat landed there hundreds of years ago, but we had boats landing there, also," Trump said.
Trump made similar comments last week, saying "the fact that they had a boat land there 500 years ago doesn't mean that they own the land," drawing mirth on social media, with comedians like Jon Stewart noting on The Daily Show "how do you think we got our land?"
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Kavish Harjai
reported from Exposition Park on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Updated January 19, 2026 6:18 PM
Published January 19, 2026 2:34 PM
People gather outside the California African American Museum in Exposition Park on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
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Topline:
At the California African American Museum’s annual King Day event, museumgoers listened to and reflected on a speech the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered less than a year before his assassination.
“Three Evils of Society”: As part of its program celebrating the civil rights leader, the Exposition Park museum played King’s keynote address to the 1967 National Conference on New Politics in Chicago. Attendees participated in a group discussion after.
Youth musicians: Later, the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles performed.
Read on … for more about the Martin Luther King Jr. Day event.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday weekend is typically busy for the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles. On Monday, the orchestra finished its third performance of the weekend at the California African American Museum, which included a musical rendition of the civil rights leader’s seminal “I Have a Dream Speech.”
It was flautist Tionna LeSassier’s first time playing with the orchestra on the federal holiday. Tionna said she began playing flute when she was 12.
“I feel really relieved that I was able to accomplish such a big performance for a really big holiday,” Tionna, who has been playing flute for more than two years, said. “I cannot believe I’m here playing with these amazing musicians.”
The orchestra’s performance, which included pieces like “We Shall Overcome” and the “Afro-American Symphony,” capped off the museum’s annual “King Day” celebration.
The event is held on the federal holiday that honors the legacy of the Baptist preacher whose nonviolent protests and eloquent speeches helped shift American attitudes about race in the 1960s and beyond and lead to landmark Civil Rights legislation.
Earlier in the day, museumgoers listened to and reflected on a recording by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. from 1967. Nearly 60 years later, event participants said, the words still feel fresh.
“When machines and computers, profit motives and property rights are considered more important than people, the giant triplets of racism, economic exploitation and militarism are incapable of being conquered,” King said in “The Three Evils of Society,” his keynote address at the National Conference on New Politics in Chicago.
Cameron Shaw, executive director of the Exposition Park museum, told LAist on Monday that the speech has “incredible relevance to the political and social moment and what we’re going through as a people today.”
In a brief discussion after the speech, one attendee spoke about the need to interrogate racism as a systematic ill, not just as one-off acts, and another commented on the importance of standing up to injustice.
Shaw says the museum’s celebration on Martin Luther King Jr. Day has evolved over the last several years, but one of the main throughlines she sees is the continued message of “speaking truth to power.”
“When we celebrate Dr. King today, we celebrate all of the folks past and present who have been brave enough to speak truth to power,” Shaw said. “That is something we truly need.”
Monday’s event also featured a faux stained glass workshop inspired by an exhibition the museum has on display about architect Amaza Lee Meredith.
In South L.A., an annual parade drew thousands of people, with a march concluding in Leimert Park. "It was a wonderful and powerful tribute to Dr. King’s memory to march down MLK Boulevard alongside so many friends and community members in the historic Leimert Park neighborhood," L.A. Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement.
A report of a stabbing marred the end of the event. Bass' statement said city officials were investigating and ensuring people got home safe. She added that "Los Angeles has zero tolerance for this type of violence."
Italian fashion designer Valentino died Monday at his Roman residence. He was 93.
Valentino's legacy: In the world of haute couture, Valentino embraced sophistication, elegance and traditional femininity through his dresses. His work embodied romance, luxury and an aristocratic lifestyle. He dressed the likes of Audrey Hepburn and Jackie Onassis, as well as modern stars, including Anna Wintour to Gwyneth Paltrow and Zendaya.
How he got his start: Valentino owed much of his success to his former lover and business partner, Giancarlo Giammetti. The two met in Rome in 1960, where Valentino had opened his first couture studio. They founded Valentino Company the same year. Together, the pair built a fashion empire over five decades.
Retirement: They sold the Valentino company in 1998 for nearly$300 million. It made $1.36 billion in revenue in 2021, according to Reuters.
Read on ... for more about Valentino's early life.
Italian fashion designer Valentino died Monday at his Roman residence. He was 93. His foundation announced his death on Instagram.
Dubbed an "international arbiter of taste" by Vogue, notable women wore his designs at funerals and weddings, as well as on the red carpet. He dressed the likes of Audrey Hepburn and Jackie Onassis, as well as modern stars, including Anna Wintour to Gwyneth Paltrow and Zendaya.
The image of style and lavish living, Valentino's signature features included crisp suits and a "crème brûlée" complexion — due to his fervor for tanning. He was heavily inspired by the stars he saw on the silver screen and had a lifelong fixation with glamour.
"I love a beautiful lady. I love a beautiful dog. I love a beautiful piece of furniture. I love beauty. It's not my fault," he said in The Last Emperor, a 2008 documentary about him.
In the world of haute couture, Valentino embraced sophistication, elegance and traditional femininity through his dresses and trademarked a vibrant red hue. His work embodied romance, luxury and an aristocratic lifestyle.
He was born Valentino Garavani and named after the silent movie star Rudolph Valentino. A self-described spoiled child, the designer acquired a taste for the expensive from a young age; his shoes were custom-made, and the stripe, color and buttons of his blazers were designed to his specifications.
His father, a well-to-do electrical supplier, and his mother, who appreciated the value of a well-made garment, catered to their young son's refined palate and later supported his fashion endeavors, sending him to school and financing his early work.
Growing up in the small town of Voghera, Italy, he learned sewing from his Aunt Rosa in Lombardy. After high school, he moved to Paris to study fashion and take on apprenticeships.
Valentino owed much of his success to his former lover and business partner, Giancarlo Giammetti. The two met in a café on the famed Via Condotti in Rome in 1960, where Valentino had opened his first couture studio.
They founded Valentino Company the same year, and its first ready-to-wear shop opened in Milan in 1969. Together, the pair built a fashion empire over five decades.
They separated romantically when Valentino was 30 but remained business partners and close friends. Valentino knew little about business and accounting before meeting Giammetti; together, they formed two parts of a whole — Giammetti the business mind, and Valentino the creative force.
"Valentino has a perfect vision of how a woman should dress," Giammetti told Charlie Rose in 2009. "He looks for beauty. Women should be more beautiful. His work is to make women more beautiful."
They sold the Valentino company in 1998 for nearly$300 million. It made $1.36 billion in revenue in 2021, according to Reuters.
Even after his retirement in 2008, he couldn't completely leave fashion behind and continued to design dresses for opera productions.
Once the fashion world became more accessible to the public, millions of aspiring fashionistas bought jeans, handbags, shoes, umbrellas and even Lincoln Continentals with his gleaming "V" monogram. By the peak of his career, Valentino's popularity would rival that of the pope's in Rome.
