Demand Justice for ICE Victims, Protect Our Wildlife
Plus: A new march on Washington, fight Flock, and more
Democracy is not a spectator sport. Whether you want to exercise your right to vote, join a protest, call your elected officials, run for office, or keep tabs on the week’s hottest issues and protests, The Contrarian has you covered.
Here are our top suggestions for getting involved in the days ahead. These are heated times; we encourage non-violent and lawful activism.
Demand Justice for ICE Victims
The ICE killings of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston and Joan Sebastian Guerrero in Maine are the latest examples of the agency’s unchecked violence. Cities across America are mobilizing this weekend to mourn the lives of these men — shot in their vehicles during stops where they were not the intended targets — and to demand justice for all victims of ICE.
Here is how you can participate in calls for accountability:
Join an immigrant-justice training call hosted by Indivisible tonight, July 23, at 8 p.m. eastern time.
Watch a hearing by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee from Houston on Friday, July 24, that will take testimony from Salgado Araujo’s sons and LULAC CEO Juan Proaño.
Join a vigil, protest, or demonstration near you on Saturday, July 25, to demand transparent, independent investigations and the end of ICE terror in American neighborhoods. (You can also watch an organizer call, and sign up to host a vigil of your own.)
Visit the Justice4LorenzoandJohan Linktree, which offers educational and actionable resources, including a vigil toolkit and a library of visual elements for use on posters and social media.
Prep for a New ‘March on Washington’
Set your calendars. There will be a new “March on Washington” on August 28. Sponsored by the Rev. Al Sharpton, Martin Luther King III, and a coalition of civil rights groups, marchers will gather at the Lincoln Memorial to demand voting rights — in the face of the ongoing Republican assault on fair representation — and economic justice.
The march is being organized around the 63rd anniversary of the original 1963 March, at which the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. Find out more about the event at MarchonWashington2026.com, where you can register to attend, sponsor a bus to the event, organize on behalf of a religious congregation, or partner with march organizers.
“We stand on the same ground because the work is not finished,” Sharpton said in announcing the new march. “The dream was never a memory to admire,” he added. “It was an assignment to complete.”
Count Down to November
July 26 will mark 100 days until midterm Election Day. Sign up with Indivisible’s “Hands Off Our Vote” campaign, dedicated to counteracting anticipated “dirty tricks” with clear information and community preparation. Those who sign up will “get notified of key voting deadlines, get updates on any threats to your voting rights” and strategies “to counter them and be ready to mobilize in defense of your vote.”
Champion Endangered Species
The Trump administration is taking devastating new steps to gut the Endangered Species Act and remove critical protections for endangered animals. This month, the administration rescinded a longstanding definition of “harm” in ESA regulations that will enable habitat destruction by industrial and commercial interests. Simultaneously, a bill is moving through Congress that would strip ESA protections from species such as gray wolves and grizzly bears. Click here to write to Congress opposing these harmful actions and rollbacks.
Protect Public Lands
The Trump administration is moving to revoke federal protections from nearly 90 percent of the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments in Utah. The move breaks commitments negotiated with local Tribal Nations, and puts these spectacular wild areas, rich with archaeological sites, at risk for drilling, mining, and other private-interest resource extraction. Use the Conservation Lands Fund website to write letters to the executive branch and your members of Congress to demand preservation of these national treasures.
Fight Flock Surveillance
Is Big Brother watching you when you drive? A huge web of AI-powered cameras has been installed along roadways in recent years across the country. The street cams can identify your vehicle and track your location and share that data with potentially thousands of law enforcement agencies. The largest network belongs to a company called Flock, which the ACLU calls “creepy” and which has been at the center of numerous invasion-of-privacy scandals, police officers using the technology to stalk romantic partners.
DeFlock is an organization that opposes the use of ALPRs — or automated licence plate readers — that is described as being able to “capture and analyze images of all passing vehicles, storing details like your car’s location, date, time, make, model, color, and identifying features.” The DeFlock website offers resources to report ALPR locations, view a map of cameras in your area, and sign up for a National Week of Action in mid-August.
Click here to find The Contrarian’s standing resources for empowering yourself in American civic life — from contacting your elected officials, to ensuring your right to vote, to supporting public-interest journalism.