The Cincinnati Enquirer published an important story about an Ohio man at risk of detention and deportation (read behind paywall). Nadhirou Tambadou is a hero and leader of a movement to demand human rights for Black Mauritanians, who was finally forced to seek safety in the United States after years of persecution by the Mauritanian government.

The Ohio Immigrant Hotline is a public good that serves the entire state. That’s why we are inviting organizations, individuals, and businesses to show their support for the Hotline by sponsoring it today. It costs approximately $6,000 for us to run the Hotline for a month, including incident intake and fulfillment. We have three tiers of sponsorship available.

When things feel heavy, Ohio’s creative community shows up.

Over the past few weeks, we at the Ohio Immigrant Alliance (OIA) have been moved by the ways people across the state are stepping up to support immigrants and speak out against ICE. Artists of all kinds are using their crafts to raise money to support our mission. Restaurants are putting their menus to work. And more is on the way. Ohioans are being both creative and brave, using their talents to fund immigrant protection and show support for a fair and humane immigration policy.

Said Lynn Tramonte, Executive Director of the Ohio Immigrant Alliance, “Art gives us access to worlds we’ve never seen, and helps us see our world in new ways. Food is another thing we have in common across backgrounds, and a way for people to come together. We are so grateful to the artists, makers, activators, and good people throughout Ohio who are working to make this a better state and donating to our cause. We have no room at our tables for ICE. We only have room for each other.” 

Here's what's happening right now, from DJs, tattoo and textile artists, restaurants, authors, pop-up markets, and more. There’s still time to support their work and make a donation to OIA. If you want to start your own fundraiser, contact us at hotline@ohioimmigrant.org for support.

These six pillars are the core components of how Ohio Immigrant Alliance’s work. This is how we respond to overreaches in federal immigration law enforcement and advocate for a fairer, more dignified immigration system for all.

ICE killed Dr. Linda Davis in Chatham County, Georgia. An immigrant, Oscar Vasquez Lopez, has been charged with the crime, but the simple truth is that immigration agents carried out a reckless law enforcement action that caused Dr. Davis’ death. And it didn’t need to happen. Today, a family, school, and community are mourning the untimely death of someone who “dedicated her career to ensuring that every child felt supported, valued, and capable of success,” according to her school’s principal, Alonna McMullen.

We’re talking about the enforcement of civil laws. Oscar Vasquez Lopez has a deportation order issued by a judge in a civil court. Police chases like the one ICE used to apprehend him are extremely dangerous to the public. That is why local law enforcement have criticized ICE, and are told not to engage in these types of tactics unless public safety calls for it — for example, if a suspect flees a murder scene and remains armed.

OIA’s Executive Director, Lynn Tramonte, testified at a hearing on Federal Civil Immigration Enforcement Proposed Code Changes before the Columbus City Council Rules & Policy Committee today.

Many people around the world are, rightfully, concerned about Haitian-Americans and Springfield. This post from the Ohio Immigrant Alliance addresses unfounded rumors and shares information on how you can get involved in your local community.

Said Sophia Pierrelus, founder of the New American Cultural Center (NACC) and a Columbus-based leader, “Framing the termination of Haiti’s TPS as a matter of ‘national interest’ ignores the real consequences on families, workers, and communities who have contributed to this country for years. Policy decisions must be grounded not only in authority, but in reality. Ending Haiti’s TPS designation disregards the ongoing humanitarian crisis and places thousands of law-abiding families in immediate uncertainty. It is in our national interest to protect Haitian people who have made Ohio their home.” 

“This is the very definition of stacking the deck against your opponent, and this is why the U.S. immigration courts must be removed from the Executive Branch,” said Lynn Tramonte, Executive Director of the Ohio Immigrant Alliance. “Stephen Miller cannot completely eliminate the Board of Immigration Appeals without action by Congress. Instead, his plan is to keep the Board in place to rule against immigrants who win in the lower courts, while denying people who lose their cases the opportunity for a second look. Courts should be independent from political direction. Our immigration courts need to be completely separated from the Executive Branch. That’s fundamental to fairness and due process. Finally making the immigration courts into an independent judiciary is long overdue. Congress must act, today. Anyone who argues against that simply wants to keep an unfair system in place.”

OIA’s Executive Director, Lynn Tramonte, spoke at the Cleveland City Club’s “Happy Dog Takes on ICE” forum, held at this beloved Cleveland hot dog restaurant and bar on February 4. The crowd was standing-room only. She was joined by immigration lawyer Pat Espinosa and Chris Schmitt, Chief Executive Officer of the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association, who moderated the discussion.

As Ohio communities face the uncertainty of the future of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians, and the threat of an immigration abduction operation, members of the Children Thrive Action Network (CTAN) stand in solidarity with Haitian families who call Ohio home, and demand federal immigration agents get out of their communities. 

Ohio House Members are introducing a package of bills to ensure accountability of law enforcement, ICE, and Border Patrol in Ohio.

Photo Credit: Jonathan Groner

Lynn Tramonte, Executive Director of the Ohio Immigrant Alliance, said: “Unmask ICE and the Border Patrol. It is unacceptable to have masked ‘law enforcement’ officers roaming our streets, carrying guns, to enforce civil immigration laws. They have brought chaos and death to local communities. Body cameras are a small concession, but this doesn’t mean a thing unless the government agrees to quickly release unedited footage. Given this administration’s track record on transparency, we don’t have any reason to believe they will. They also need to remove the masks, and require agents to wear standard uniforms and show ID. Professionalism and integrity in law enforcement requires this. Right now, ICE and the Border Patrol are using criminal tactics to harass and arrest our community members. They are also emboldening and empowering criminals, who are copying their actions to harm people.”

As ICE and the Border Patrol threaten to surge in Ohio, people around the state and country are wondering what they can do.

• Here is a list of the key organizations working on the ground in Springfield and Lima, another area of Ohio that welcomed Haitians, and is now worried about their ability to remain in their new home.

• Sign this petition calling for an extension of Temporary Protected Status for Haiti, started by a Springfield couple.

• Register to attend the Emergency Meeting: Unite for Springfield - ICE Out of Our Communities (online) on Tuesday, February 3, at 8:30pm ET. Ohio Immigrant Alliance is one the speakers.

• Program the Ohio Immigrant Hotline (email and phone) into your phone, and share it with your friends and community. Reach out if you have a question, need a speaker, want to report abuses, need support for a loved one in detention, and more.

• Order your “Ohio Is Home” and “Migration Is Human” merch from our online store. Designs by Shema Asifiwe, a high school student in Cincinnati.

• Join the Ohio Immigrant Alliance e-mail list for updates and action alerts and donate to OIA. Help keep our hotline, commissary support, jail abuse monitoring/advocacy, and immigrant accompaniment programs going.

On January 29, OIA’s Demba Ndiath spoke at a press conference at the Columbus Liberation Center about our endorsement of the January 30 National Shutdown. Here are his prepared remarks.

“In immigrant-rich Greater Cincinnati, as 2025 began, local jails held around 100 people for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. By the end of the year – as federal agents ramped up efforts and local jails signed on to help – thousands had been arrested and detained.” So begins Cincinnati Enquirer’s “'Living in hell.' How 2025 became the year of ICE in Greater Cincinnati.”

The article is a lengthy retrospective on immigration storylines in Ohio in 2025, chronicling how the Trump administration’s rhetoric on immigration did not match reality.

Unless something changes, the civil immigration jail system is “on track to rival the entire federal criminal prison system by the end of President Trump’s second term in office,” according to a new American Immigration Council report. 

Said Lynn Tramonte, Executive Director of the Ohio Immigrant Alliance, “Instead of allowing this system to grow and kill more people, Congress should cut the ICE budget to force the Trump administration to focus its work. And state and local police should stop participating in the destruction of our families and communities. End these county-ICE jail contracts. We don’t need to participate in a system that harms people. Instead, we need Congress to update the immigration laws and make them work for today’s realities.”  

The federal government claims 280 people were arrested, and cites a laundry list of criminal offenses to justify their capture. The Ohio Immigrant Alliance identified at least 214 people — likely more — who had been arrested during the Operation, through a variety of sources. Our analysis also documented the fact that the public cannot trust the government’s claims about immigrants’ criminal history. As we wrote in our analysis, “the administration has a documented record of lying about immigrants’ criminal histories and gang affiliations. It also refuses to answer questions from the media or provide transparent evidence of its claims.” ABC 6 also found major disparities in their accusations. 

Renee Good, a U.S. citizen in Minneapolis, was murdered in cold blood by a federal agent today. It’s unclear whether her family had even been notified before DHS Secretary Kristi Noem attacked her in a press conference. Video from every angle shows Good was attempting to leave a chaotic and dangerous scene. She did not drive her car toward anyone. Ohio native Tricia McLaughlin, a DHS spokesperson, claimed the ICE agent who murdered Good fired “defensive shots.”  

Today, OIA is releasing an analysis of ICE detention during the Columbus raids so far. The analysis, conducted by researcher John Drury, is based on publicly-available information. And, it is likely an undercount of the arrests and detentions under the so-called “Operation Buckeye,” given data limitations explained in the report’s methodology section. Only the government, possibly, knows the full extent of this campaign. Given how chaotically it has been carried out, even that may not be true. 

Ohio Immigrant Alliance believes at least 214 people were arrested as part of this ICE operation and remain in detention — likely many more. Eighty percent appear to be Latino, plus three people who are Indigenous from Guatemala. The next largest group — Africans — comprises less than 10%. Fully 93% of those arrested are men.