Unified Asian Communities

08/15/2026

✈️🚆🚌 Know Your Rights: ICE in Transit Spaces

As part of our commitment to keeping our community informed and empowered, UAC wants to ensure everyone understands what it means when Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers are present in airports, train stations, and bus terminals across the United States. These locations are considered “transportation hubs,” and ICE, along with Border Patrol, may conduct certain types of enforcement activities there. It’s important to know what they can do and what you can do to protect your rights.

🔍 Where ICE Commonly Operates
Airports: Security checkpoints, boarding areas, and international arrival zones

Train Stations: Platforms, waiting areas, and occasionally onboard trains

Bus Stations: Ticketing areas, platforms, and sometimes onboard buses

ICE focuses on immigration enforcement, while Border Patrol may conduct “transportation checks” near border regions. Their presence does not mean you have done anything wrong.

🛑 Your Rights in These Spaces
You have rights regardless of your immigration status.
Here are the key protections everyone should remember:

You do NOT have to answer questions about your immigration status.
You may choose to remain silent.

You do NOT have to show ID unless you are driving or in certain secure airport zones.

You do NOT have to consent to a search of your bags or belongings.
If officers claim they have probable cause, they may still search but your refusal is important to state clearly.

You have the right to ask, “Am I free to go?”
If yes, calmly walk away.

You have the right to speak with an attorney.
You can say: “I want to speak to a lawyer.”

📌 What ICE Can Do
Conduct immigration checks in certain areas

Ask questions about citizenship or travel documents

Detain individuals if they believe immigration laws were violated

However, ICE must follow legal procedures. They cannot force you to answer questions, and they cannot search you without consent or probable cause.

📌 What ICE Cannot Do
They cannot enter non-public areas (like back offices or private buses) without permission or a warrant

They cannot detain you without reasonable suspicion

They cannot take your documents without returning them

💬 Tips for Staying Safe & Calm
Keep your travel documents organized if you are flying internationally

Stay calm and avoid confrontation

Do not provide false information

If you feel your rights were violated, write down details immediately after the encounter

🤝 UAC Is Here for You
Unified Asian Communities is committed to protecting and educating our community. If you or someone you know has experienced an encounter with ICE and needs support, please reach out. We provide:

Rights-based education

Community workshops

Referrals to legal resources

Advocacy and support

📣 Stay Informed. Stay Empowered. Stay Connected.
Follow UAC on Facebook and Instagram for more community education posts, upcoming workshops, and volunteer opportunities.

08/06/2026

📣As we continue through changing and challenging times. We want to share information for the community to have up to date and accurate information. 📣

Please be informed about travel! 🚙🛫✈️🚂

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1P229a1kqT/?mibextid=wwXIfr

07/30/2026

Standing Together, Working Together: A Message of Solidarity 🖤

To our beautiful, diverse, and unified communities,

Our hearts are heavy. The recent surge in immigration crackdowns, detentions, deportations, and the tragic loss of life within our communities has brought profound sadness and anxiety to many of our doorsteps. 😢 We see your pain, we share your grief, and we refuse to let our community suffer in silence. Solidarity is not just a word; it is our lifeline. When one part of our community hurts, we all feel the impact. We stand firmly with every individual and family facing uncertainty, fear, or loss right now. You are not alone. Please know that while the headlines may fade, the work does not stop. Behind the scenes, dedicated advocates, organizers, and community members are working tirelessly every single day. We are quietly but fiercely doing the work in the background to build safety nets, provide resources, offer legal guidance/referrals , and create spaces of protection. Our commitment to keeping our community safe remains unshakable. We are organizing, preparing, and watching out for one another. We draw strength from our ancestors, our shared history, and our unbreakable collective bond. Check in on your neighbors. Hold space for your loved ones. We are still here, we are still fighting, and we will continue to protect our collective future. ✊🏽✊🏾✊🏼

07/13/2026

📣📣📣Join us and many others. 📣📣📣

12:00pm Mechanics Park, Biddeford.

No More ICE! No more deaths!!🙏

**ACTION**

Mechanics Park, Biddeford
13Jul2026 @ 1200EST

Community emergency rally being held at 12 in response to ICE murdering a community member this morning.

07/01/2026

Big news happening around the U.S.

Supreme Court upholds Birthright Citizenship! 🙌🏻

06/20/2026

Today we honor the life and enduring legacy of Vincent Chin. On June 19, 1982, a senseless, racially motivated attack took the life of a 27-year-old Chinese American in Detroit. When his killers received only lenient sentences and no jail time, the Asian American community mobilized, transforming a tragedy into a national movement for civil rights and equal justice.Vincent Chin’s story is a profound reminder of the necessity of cross-racial solidarity and the continuous fight to dismantle xenophobia and racism. We will never forget him.Learn more about his legacy through the Vincent Chin Institute. Let’s continue to work together to stop the hate!

06/02/2026

🏳️‍🌈 Happy Pride Month from Unified Asian Communities! 🏳️‍⚧️As we transition from AAPI Heritage Month into June, we honor the beautiful intersection of culture, identity, and community. Being both Q***r and Asian means navigating multiple worlds at once—a journey that can be deeply nuanced, but one that is rooted in incredible resilience, history, and joy.In our mission to build an inclusive world where everyone feels "at home," we stand firmly in solidarity with our LGBTQIA+ Asian and Asian American siblings. Q***r, trans, and non-binary individuals have always been a vital part of our history—leading movements, breaking barriers, and enriching our communities.True community empowerment means ensuring that every voice is seen, safe, loved, and heard. Let’s continue to lift each other up, celebrate our full selves, and foster radical acceptance across all generations. 🙏

05/20/2026

📌We stand in solidarity with our community and uplifting all of our voices against the current "Reconciliation Budget" that is proposed and going to vote within the next 24-48 hours. ⏳ We urge all community members to join us in contacting your Senators and Congress reps, demanding all of them to vote NO‼️ on this significantly harmful budget. Please see our letter to elected officials below. 📝

May 20, 2026
To: Senators Susan Collins and Angus King, and Reps. Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden
RE: No More Blank Checks for ICE and CBP - Oppose the Budget Reconciliation
Unified Asian Communities (UAC) is a Maine-based not-for-profit offering community service and cultural support to the over-23,000 Asian-heritage individuals and communities, including U.S. citizens and non-citizen residents who are immigrants from Asian countries of origin and elsewhere. We were founded during the pandemic in response to the surge of anti-Asian violence in Maine and elsewhere in the U.S.
At a time when Americans are struggling with housing, childcare, and rising costs, Congress should reject unchecked funding for ICE and CBP and instead require real reforms, oversight, and constitutional safeguards. We at UAC write to urge you to Vote No on the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 budget reconciliation bill and any accompanying amendments that will be voted on shortly in Congress. We also urge Members to vote NO on all amendments to the bill that will harm immigrant communities—specifically, amendments that vilify and criminalize immigrant communities fuel division and inflame anti-immigrant sentiment. This bill would
dramatically expand the already dangerously bloated budgets of immigration enforcement agencies without meaningful accountability, oversight, or protections for our impacted
communities.
Through this bill, Congress aims to hand the federal government another $72 billion to fuel the Trump Administration’s cruel immigration campaign. And this comes at a time when ICE and
CBP are already swimming in money, thanks to the $170 billion in immigration funds from last year’s reconciliation bill. The Trump administration’s spending spree following the last reconciliation budget bill has included:
● Buying massive detention warehouses and surging immigration enforcement
● Funding shocking violence including the deaths of U.S. citizens and immigrants in
Minneapolis and nationwide
● Separating and jailing thousands of families at the Dilley family prison, including
newborns, pregnant individuals, and children with serious medical conditions.
● Illegally restricting Members of Congress from routine detention facility oversight, justified by DHS’s claims that funds received through reconciliation are not subject to oversight required by the annual appropriations bills. DHS, ICE, and CBP are already working with a bloated budget and insufficient oversight, in spite of no evidence of an increase in need for this funding and years of documented unlawful and unethical uses of this funding including inadequate training for field agents and abuses by ICE agents and those working in detention facilities, leading to deaths in custody, family separation, racial profiling, and other unlawful enforcement tactics, terrorizing lawful U.S. citizens and legal residents. The bill also bypasses the normal funding process in Congress, setting a dangerous precedent that allows the party in power to hand DHS and other agencies massive funding increases without accountability or oversight.
The Trump Administration’s immigration agenda has harmed Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities across the country, including in Maine. From increased targeting of immigrant neighborhoods, shocking increases in detention and
deportation rates of AAPI immigrants, and entry bans that have separated families and stigmatized entire communities, AAPI community members have experienced firsthand the
consequences of punitive immigration policies enacted by these agencies. Families have been targeted and separated by ICE and CBP agents, and community members are terrified to leave
their homes even to attend doctor’s appointments or send their kids to school. AAPI communities have experienced the direct harms and even more heightened racial profiling of
this administration’s immigration agenda, including expanded surveillance and enforcement targeting immigrant neighborhoods, prolonged family separation due to travel and visa bans, and heightened detention and deportation rates.
Instead of investing tens of billions more into a detention and deportation apparatus with a long record of abuse, misconduct, lack of oversight, Congress should prioritize humane and effective
immigration solutions that keep families together and uphold due process and civil rights. ICE and CBP already have far more money than the budgets they’ve historically received through the appropriations process. The country simply cannot afford this ongoing diversion of public funds for ICE and CBP in the face of economic hardship and systemic abuses.
We urge you to vote NO on the budget reconciliation bill and to vote NO on all amendments that would use budget reconciliation to advance harmful anti-immigrant policies that would
disproportionately harm Asian-American, Pacific Islander, and other immigrant communities.
Sincerely,
Theresa Kim, Executive Director
Bonnie Tai, Board member
Unified Asian Communities

05/14/2026

📣📣Sharing from one of our partners! Mental health is beyond important! 🙏

Here in Maine, we have numerous providers who are here to help. 🫶🏻

05/10/2026

Happy Mother’s Day to ALL the moms out there! 💐💐🙌🏻🙌🏻

May your day be heathy, warm, and full of love! You deserve today and every day for all the days you have given to all of us! ❤️🙏💐💐🌷🌸