What is a Red Card? ILRC helps immigrants understand their constitutional rights

USA Today

07-02-2025

What is a Red Card? ILRC helps immigrants understand their constitutional rights
Show Caption
Hide Caption
What we know: How far can immigration officials go under new laws?
From executive orders on birthright citizenship to deputizing federal agents, how far can immigration laws go? Here's what we know.
Grassroots immigrant rights efforts have been seen across the United States in response to President Donald Trump's immigration orders - including acts of resistance that fit in the palm of your hand.
The Immigrant Legal Resource Center started the ILRC Red Card program almost 20 years ago in 2007 according to representative Donna De La Cruz. From individuals downloading the cards at home to nonprofits who order them thousands at a time, the ILRC has seen a massive increase in utilization of the program in recent months.
"There has been a huge uptick since the election," De La Cruz said. "We've had about 9,000,000 requests."
Amid promises of "mass deportation," Trump has already enacted a number of anti-immigration policies including ending immigration protection for more than 600,000 Venezuelan immigrants, authorizing immigration enforcement on school campuses, preparing to house 30,000 migrants at Guantanamo Bay and more.
Here's what to know about red cards and the ILRC's goals.
What is a red card?
According to the ILRC website, Red Cards are intended to provide information to all people in the U.S. - regardless of immigration status - on their rights and protections under the U.S. Constitution. The website says ILRC Red Cards can help people assert their rights and defend themselves in many situations, including when U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents go to a home.
On one side of the cards, a script designed to help assert Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights is printed. On the other side, advice is listed.
Do not open the door if an immigration agent is knocking on the door.
Do not answer any questions from an immigration agent if they try to talk to you. You have the right to remain silent.
Do not sign anything without first speaking to a lawyer. You have the right to speak with a lawyer.
If you are outside of your home, ask the agent if you are free to leave and if they say yes, leave calmly.
Give the card to the agent. If you are inside of your home, show the card through the window or slide it under the door.
The ILRC provides printable cards formatted as 3.5 by 2 inch business cards, with versions translated into Spanish and a number of other languages available to allow non-English speaking immigrants to translate their rights with immigration officers.
"You could definitely share them at community meetings, with your church groups, with any group that you feel it would be helpful to disseminate," De La Cruz said.
As of Feb. 6, demand for the cards is so high that a form allowing nonprofits to access Red Cards for free has been temporarily closed. Paid orders are still available from RedCardOrders.com.
What is the ILRC?
The Immigrant Legal Resource Center, founded as the Golden Gate Immigration Clinic in 1979 by immigrant rights attorney Bill Ong Hing, works to "improve immigration law and policy, expand the capacity of legal service providers, and advance immigrant rights."
More: Trump's buyout offer for federal workers paused by judge hours before deadline
What are Fifth Amendment rights?
The Fifth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States states that:
"No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation."
MoloLamken Law Firm materials explained that when a person "pleads the Fifth" they invoke their "right to remain silent." Silence or refusal to answer questions cannot be used against people who plead the Fifth in a criminal case. Prosecutors cannot argue to the jury that the defendant's silence implies guilt.
What is a sanctuary city? Is Asheville, NC a sanctuary city?
The American Immigration Council explained that there is no universal definition of a sanctuary city. However, an area may be considered a sanctuary city, county or state if it falls into one of a number of categories.
These categories can include policies preventing immigration detention centers, policies restricting the police or other city workers from asking about immigration status, policies refusing to allow ICE into local jails without a judicial warrant and more.
In 2019, Sheriff Quentin Miller announced that Buncombe County would no longer honor ICE detainers, holds placed on inmates who federal immigration officials suspect are in the country illegally. A 2024 ICE Detainer Acceptance Report labeled Buncombe County as non-cooperative in enforcement and removal operations.
On Trump's first day in office, the Department of Homeland Security rescinded government protocol preventing federal agents from conducting immigration enforcement at "sensitive locations" such as schools and churches.
More: After Trump WNC visit, protesters call for further FEMA hotel voucher extensions
Iris Seaton is the trending news reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at [e-mail].