Oversight Project exposes Democrat-aligned NGO's 'conspiracy' to undermine immigration enforcement

Undercover footage obtained by Anthony Rubin's watchdog outfit, Muckraker, and published by the Oversight Project shows the Chinese-American Planning Council, a taxpayer-funded group based in New York City, provide training on how to prevent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials from enforcing federal law and removing illegal aliens from the homeland.

Mike Howell, president of the Oversight Project — now a 501(c)(4) organization independent of the Heritage Foundation — told Blaze News, "This type of conduct supported by taxpayers and far left politicians transcends just policy disagreements. This is a conspiracy of individuals and organizations to thwart law enforcement."

Howell indicated that the Oversight Project has referred this matter to the Trump administration as well as to Mayor Eric Adams (D).

"We will find out if Mayor Adams is serious about being tough on illegal immigration or just talks a big game for politics," said Howell.

The leftist group

The stated purpose of the CPC, supposedly "the nation's largest Asian American social service organization," is to address "the evolving needs of Chinese American, immigrant, and low-income communities and promot[e] an inclusive environment where everyone can thrive."

The organization has enjoyed the support of various Democratic lawmakers from New York, including U.S. Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, Reps. Dan Goldman, Grace Meng, Jerry Nadler, and Nydia Velazquez, and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul.

According to its latest financial statement, it received over $46.8 million in government grants and contracts between July 2023 and June 2024.

'We have a few ways that you can get ready.'

The leftist organization has made no secret of its opposition to the proper enforcement of American immigration laws.

The group has, for instance, condemned government policies that "target communities through raids, arrests, and separations," as well as American policies that "passively but intentionally erode existing pathways to immigration and naturalization."

In addition to providing illegal aliens with advanced warnings of ICE raids, the group has held multiple "Know Your Rights" seminars "explaining how New Yorkers can protect themselves and their communities from the overreach of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement."

The CPC scrubbed its page of evidence of a March 13 "Know Your Rights" webinar but not before Blaze News was able to capture a screenshot, below.

Rubin indicated that Rep. Goldman, who apparently requested $1 million federal taxpayer dollars for the CPC, was featured on promotional material for one of these anti-ICE events.

The footage

In the footage published by the Oversight Project, Carlyn Cowen, the chief policy and public affairs officer of the CPC, provided would-be subversives with an example of an ICE-evasion tactic used in a restaurant where she works weekends.

"What we train everybody to do is if we see ICE come to the door, we actually enter a button in our [point-of-sale] system that says 'la migra' and you click it, and then it prints a ticket to everywhere else in the restaurant so that everybody knows, right?" said Cowen. "So different kinds of protocols based on the type of organization or space."

"No matter what kind of organization or business that you're in, we have a few ways that you can get ready," said Cowen. "Number one is hardening your physical space."

'Such gross misuse of taxpayer funds by partisan activist organizations must be swiftly addressed.'

"Number two is doing a data audit and updating your data protection polices," continued the radical. "Number three, identifying a list of individuals that are authorized to respond if ICE comes to the door and then having a clear protocol. And then number four, training everybody who's going to be involved in the proper procedure and making sure they feel ready and confident to respond."

In another clip taken at the same ICE evasion seminar, a leftist social worker named Janice Northia played footage of Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, discussing the efforts by NGOs to help illegal aliens avoid deportation.

"[Homan] is very upset that the community is getting to know their rights," said Northia. "So when we see that's the message that they're giving us, it's showing, right, what it's — the fact that we're being informed is making it difficult for them to do their job."

Northia subsequently ran the audience through ways to identify and avoid ICE agents.

Blaze News reached out to the CPC for comment but did not receive a response by deadline.

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"Where are the Chinese-Americans and the Planning in this Council?" Howell quipped on X.

The Oversight Project president told Blaze News, "Opposing basic immigration enforcement policy is one thing, actually being aware of and supporting efforts taken to impede it is a whole different ballgame and one that can get into criminal territory fast."

"Why are our taxpayer dollars going to radical political organizations, which actively seek to undermine the rule of law in our country?" said Anthony Rubin of Muckraker. "Organizations such as the CPC should have no place receiving taxpayer dollars while they engage in anti-law, pro-illegal immigration activism. Such gross misuse of taxpayer funds by partisan activist organizations must be swiftly addressed."

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