President Trump’s efforts to crack down on immigration have left millions of undocumented immigrants with an uncertain future in America. In response, digital entrepreneurs are using technology to help support this community.
These apps and tools arm undocumented immigrants with knowledge, safety and moral support without compromising privacy (from CNN).
Arrived
A hub for immigration resources, Arrived displays the latest immigration news and educates users on the deportation process. It also offers English lessons, answers popular queries like “how to write a resume” and offers a map with every non-governmental organization, law clinic and sanctuary city in the United States.
Arrived was founded and created by two full-time Googlers, William McLaughlin and Eduardo Gaitan.
“I immigrated to the United States from Colombia when I was younger, so I’ve gone through the whole immigration process by seeing firsthand how difficult it can be,” Gaitan says. “And coupling that with what’s been going on in the news with immigration, I wanted to be involved in some way.”
The news feed provides analysis of the latest legislative proposals and actions coming out of Washington, so immigrants can separate facts from fiction. Arrived also provides a Know Your Rights card.
“There is a widespread, resounding, deafening silence in the tech community for the undocumented immigrants, and we’re just trying to fill that void,” McLaughlin says.
CoverMe
CoverMe is an app for ultimate privacy protection. Users are able to make encrypted calls and send private texts with no trace on the phone bill and free from interception.
The powerful Private Vault keeps users’ private photos, videos, important personal information, confidential documents… safe from prying eyes.
It is also protected with strong access control for extra safety. It is hard for intruders to enter it.
The app will make sure undocumented immigrants don’t compromise their safety or their contacts’ safety. The calls and messages are encrypted, and all records disappear after the message is sent.
Cell 411
Although Cell 411 isn’t specifically for undocumented immigrants, the app recently rolled out features for that population. It allows users to contact close friends and family when being confronted by ICE officers.
“I’m an immigrant myself,” says founder and CEO Virgil Vaduva. “I remember when my visa expired and how terrifying it was.”
The app allows users to stream and record live videos that cannot be erased. It can also send out users’ GPS coordinates and includes a ride sharing option.
The number of Hispanic users has spiked since Trump’s inauguration. There are 72,000 active users.