What would you do if you saw ICE agents stopping voters on their way to the polls? Or if increased federal agent activity were keeping your neighbors home on Election Day? Or if FBI Director Kash Patel followed through on his threat to send agents to polling stations?
These — and other scenarios — are all real possibilities that could have a real effect on how our democracy thrives on November 3. (That’s Election Day, BTW. Do you have a plan?) Anyone who cares about our city and its fair and free elections, should be concerned.
“I don’t think you have to be a conspiracy theorist to think there might be federal agents who show up at polling places,” says Changing the Conversation Together (CTC) Director Adam Barbanel-Fried. “There has been a lot of escalated rhetoric in our political universe that has been so extreme at times that it really can create a universe of fear that people aren’t even thinking straight, on any side.”
That’s why The Citizen is joining CTC to offer a one-evening training on safety and de-escalation techniques that we can take with us to the polls (and beyond), to protect our neighbors in a grounded and peaceful way. Join us on October 20, from 6:30 to 9pm, at a Center City location to be announced closer to the date. (RSVP here.)
The training will be led by Eileen Flanagan, a Quaker speaker, author and activist, who has spent years helping organizations such as Earth Quaker Action Team and Choose Democracy learn to hold their ground calmly under pressure. Flanagan — a Philadelphian who herself has been arrested for acts of nonviolent resistance — will impart practical skills such as assessing a situation for safety; deescalating tensions; interacting with ICE or other federal agents near the polls; understanding voters’ rights; responding to disinformation; documenting incidents safely; and ensuring everyone at the polling station has the resources and information to get help if needed.
“One of the most important things we can do is stay grounded and steady and really protect the voters who have decided to show up, especially in neighborhoods where it might not be on their radar to vote.” — Adam Barbanel-Fried
The goal is to ensure as many citizens as possible are able to vote, while keeping everyone safe — voters, poll workers, protesters, federal agents and supporters. “There will be lessons learned that may be of benefit to folks: What do I do if I see a federal agent doing something immoral and unjust, but also against the law? How do I do it in a way that doesn’t put myself in danger, or make it worse?” says Barbanel-Fried. “One of the most important things we can do is stay grounded and steady and really protect the voters who have decided to show up, especially in neighborhoods where it might not be on their radar to vote.”
CTC, a nonprofit that deep canvasses in Philly, has worked in the city for the last six years to encourage citizens at risk of not voting to show up to the ballot box. The group first canvassed in Philly ahead of the 2020 election. They came back for the 2022 midterms and again for the 2024 presidential election, when 77 percent of the West Philly residents CTC canvassers spoke with showed up to vote on Election Day, compared to 58 percent of their neighbors. (The Philadelphia Citizen partnered with CTC during both cycles.)
In 2025, CTC returned to West Philly, sending volunteers out to help people call or write to their representatives about the proposed cuts to Medicaid and SNAP benefits in H.R.1, Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill.” CTC, which first partnered with Flanagan in 2024, has spent most of this year in Harrisburg, deep canvassing to get out the vote. They’re returning to Philly for the October 20 training.
The two-hour event will focus on the upcoming election, but the skills are applicable to many situations in our current political times, including protests and ICE raids, or even personal beefs one might witness on a bus or on the street. In any of those scenarios, staying calm is imperative. “Sometimes there are allies of immigrants who can understandably get so outraged and don’t know what to do, and they need to keep their cool in that dynamic, as well,” says Barbanel-Fried. “Helping people who care be more effective is important.”
LOCAL DEMOCRACY, LOCAL CITIZENSHIP
