Tonight on The Detroit Evening Report, we cover local activist groups’ efforts to share resources for immigrants amid the Trump administration’s mass deportation effort; U.S. Sen. Gary Peters’ announcement that he won’t seek reelection next year and more.

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Immigrants urged to ‘know your rights’

Immigrant activists and nonprofit groups in Detroit are reminding undocumented migrants that they still have rights. 

Community leaders, including Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib and Councilwoman Gabriela Santiago-Romero, held a news conference in Detroit on Wednesday to make sure residents know that fact. Federal agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement – or ICE – have been rounding up undocumented migrants in locations around the country.  Activists are advising those sought by ICE – not to open their doors without proof of a warrant signed by a judge.   

Peters to retire from U.S. Senate

Michigan’s senior U.S. Senator says he’s not running for reelection next year.

Sen. Gary Peters told The Detroit News he’s looking forward to some new activities.  Peters was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2014. Before that he served three terms in the U.S. House.  His decision means a U.S. Senate seat, the Michigan governor’s office and several other key state positions will all be up for grabs in the same year. Many potential candidates are expected to express their interest in the Senate seat in the months ahead.   

Detroit reminds residents of available tax credits

The city of Detroit is advising residents to make sure they claim the tax credits they’re entitled to. Officials held a news conference Wednesday morning to get the message out. Key credits include the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit.  Both can be used to reduce the taxes residents owe if they qualify. 

Mary Sheffield to hold District 5 meeting

City Council President Mary Sheffield is holding a District 5 meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday, at the Joseph Walker Recreation Center, 8531 Rosa Parks Blvd., Detroit.  The gathering will give residents an opportunity to meet district representatives and discuss key plans and budget priorities for the year.  

Detroit continues police chief search

The Detroit Police Department will continue the process of finding a new police chief this week. The Board of Police Commissioners is scheduled to hold public interviews of five candidates on Thursday. Only one of those candidates is currently working in the Detroit Police Department. BridgeDetroit reports that three of the candidates have faced lawsuits or internal investigations into misconduct. The Board of Police Commissioners meeting takes place at 3 p.m Thursday at Laborers’ International Union Local 1191, 2161 West Grand Blvd., Detroit.  Residents can also watch the meeting via Zoom. 

GM reports loss in fourth quarter

General Motors says it lost nearly$3 billion in the last three months of 2024.  The Detroit automaker blames much of that loss on the Chinese auto market – where competition from Chinese companies has stiffened. Despite the quarterly loss – GM beat Wall Street analysts’ expectations.  The company brought in $47.7 billion in revenue in the October to December period. 

Detroit Lions hire John Morton 

The NFL Network is reporting that John Morton has been hired as the Detroit Lions new offensive coordinator. He’s been with the Denver Broncos for the past two seasons — but did work with the Lions in 2022 as a senior offensive assistant. Morton will replace Ben Johnson who was touted as one of the major forces behind the Lions’ powerful offense this season. Johnson has been hired as the new head coach of the Chicago Bears. 

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.

An advocacy group says immigrants in Michigan can take steps to keep themselves from being deported if they plan for the possibility ahead of time.

The Trump administration is conducting a series of raids nationwide, following the president’s campaign pledge to launch a massive effort to deport undocumented immigrants.

That concerns the head of the metro Detroit-based Arab-American Civil Rights League, Nabih Ayad.

He tells WDET that the speed with which federal agents are carrying out the deportations stacks the odds against even immigrants who are in the process of becoming U.S. citizens.

Listen: Nabih Ayad of Arab American Civil Rights League urges immigrants to be proactive, ‘know your rights’

The following interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Nabih Ayad: What protection they have is very little, because the section of the law that the government is using most likely is going to be the expedited removal statute. Basically, they can arrest you, detain you, put you on a plane and get you out of here literally within days. And that’s very dangerous because the officer that’s arresting these individuals does not know the background, does not know the law to a certain degree, does not know if that person has a pending application of some kind of relief. There may be an asylum claim that he or she may be eligible to apply for.

Quinn Klinefelter, WDET News: What do you suggest a person in those kinds of situations should try to do?

NA: They should call our hotline, possibly even before something is happening. Just to know what their rights are, to make sure that they understand they have certain protections under our U.S. Constitution. They may have relief, for instance, if they came to this country and like a lot of individuals, they are afraid to return because they’ll be persecuted or tortured because of their political opinion, background, religion. They can have protections there. They can go ahead and stop the expedited removal and send them through normal removal proceedings where they can adjudicate their application.

Another one is maybe they’re married to a United States citizen, or their wife is about to get citizenship, say, next month, maybe she can apply for them. That could protect them. Maybe they have some litigation pending that could actually allow them to stay here under the expedited removal statute. There’s a number of different forms that possibly are available to them.

QK: It sounds as if things would be happening at such a rapid speed. Is it possible for somebody to take some of the steps you’re talking about while, perhaps, an agent is trying to hustle them out of the country?

NA: That’s the thing, once they arrest you, it’s going to be pretty hard for you to exercise those rights if you don’t know where to call, or the family is not aware who to call. Because it happens so fast, that’s the danger of it. If we step into federal court, it’s going to take us as attorneys a couple days to draw up the complaint for an injunction to stop the government from removing this individual. So it’s always better to act proactive as opposed to post-active.

QK: You are also suggesting that people should carry around with them some identification and other documents?

NA: Absolutely, especially in these circumstances. If you’re not a green card holder, a United States citizen, absolutely have every type of documentation you have to show that you have roots in this community for a number of years. I would ask something that shows at least two to three years, the more years, the better.

QK: Why would that matter that they have roots here?

NA: Because the expedite removal statute, technically, is only to be applied for individuals that just recently came in. Now, if I arrest you as an immigration custom enforcement officer and I don’t know you, I just see that you have no documentation, I can just say you came in last week or two weeks ago. And I can arrest you and put you on a plane, get rid of you. But if I see documentation showing that you’ve been here for a number of years, then the laws are different. Then they have to put you through normal removal process with an immigration court in charge. Which allows you to remain here for a number of years while you litigate that process.