MIF Network Call – February

With recent ICE activity in Minneapolis and other U.S. cities, journalists covering immigration enforcement are facing heightened legal, physical and political risk. These pressures are not isolated incidents but part of a broader national threat landscape affecting how the press operates.

This MIF Network Meeting will focus on how grantmakers can support and protect newsrooms and journalists, particularly when ICE mounts major operations. While we will ground the conversation in Minnesota, we will also examine how different communities are deploying different strategies in response. We’ll hear how resources are being mobilized regionally, including perspectives from Chicago on how funding is being directed on the ground, alongside insights from the International Women’s Media Foundation on emerging risks, safety gaps and the infrastructure journalists need to operate securely.

Participants will leave with practical entry points for immediate support and a clearer framework for aligning rapid response with long term democratic resilience.

Featured Speakers:

• Tracy Baim, Executive Director, Press Forward Chicago
• Mukhtar M. Ibrahim, Principal Consultant, Sayid Group
• Elisa Lees Muñoz, President, International Women’s Media Foundation
• Tim Murphy, Program Officer, McKnight Foundation