Grid Magazine: Northwest neighbors' grassroots grit saves chef from deportation
Grid Magazine · September 1, 2026 · By Constance Garcia-Barrio
Grid tells the story of Anou Vongbandith, the Das Good Cafe chef in Germantown whom masked ICE agents boxed in and took off the street in July 2025, then held at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center. Reclaim Philadelphia runs through the whole account: Executive Director Seth Anderson-Oberman and Northwest chapter leader Jason Massey met with Anou's wife, Anh, and asked what would help, then Reclaim joined the Northwest Immigration Network, Indivisible Philadelphia and other neighbors in spreading word of the arrest and planning the August 9 rally that pushed for his release. Reclaim member Ann Doley organized by phone, text and social media and made the graphics and posters. Barbershops and bakeries put "Bring Anou home" flyers in their windows. He came home.