Some of the most unforgettable scenes of Trump's second term have come from 26 Federal Plaza, an unassuming immigration court building in downtown Manhattan. Masked federal agents stalk the halls, pouncing on unsuspecting families of immigrants who arrive for routine court appearances, separating fathers from their weeping wives and children. 

We've heard less about the other forces operating inside these buildings and across New York City's many vibrant immigrant communities. As TPM reporter Hunter Walker documented in a two-month investigation, in the city and across the nation, growing networks of volunteers and advocates are fighting diligently to protect their undocumented neighbors. 

The Undocumented Underground is at work in the streets, in churches, at safe houses, and at free legal clinics. Volunteers with no legal experience are training themselves on YouTube videos and using Google Translate to assist migrants with their cases. Others accompany those seeking asylum to their court hearings, ushering them by the shoulder through the ICE-haunted hallways. High school students are showing up at welcome centers after school to assist with English lessons. Rapid responders are using encrypted chats to warn their neighbors when federal agents are spotted nearby. Inside the office of Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY), a "habeus machine" has been instrumental in freeing detainees. 

Hunter spoke to more than 50 migrants, activists, lawyers, ICE agents, and lawmakers to document "some of the extralegal excesses of the current administration and the lengths people are going to fight back." We've run about half of the series so far, with new pieces rolling out through Christmas, including exclusive interviews with Goldman and Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani. 

As dark as this year has been and as much devastation as the Trump administration has caused, we hope the Undocumented Underground reminds you, in this holiday season, that there is light all around us.

– Allegra Kirkland