Every child has the right to learn without fearing ICE raids at school. Sign the petition telling school districts to keep ALL students safe.
Dear MoveOn member,
The Trump administration is cruelly directing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to target public schools, bus stops, and other places where students naturally gather.1 This heartless policy threatens to turn schools into traumatizing sites of surveillance and intimidation, instead of safe places for our students to learn freely.
Just recently near a middle school in Texas, ICE arrested, detained, and deported a mother and three children—including two U.S.-born children.2 This is chilling, and it instills fear and uncertainty in children and families across the country. Now is the time to sound the alarm.
Some school districts are already taking action to protect the rights of students. In California, one school district hosted a free immigration clinic for families, and ICE agents were turned away from two Los Angeles elementary schools in April.3,4
Every child in the United States has a right to safe education no matter their immigration status. It’s up to local school boards and local municipalities to pass clear policies that effectively ban ICE from school grounds and block any cooperation between school staff and immigration enforcement.
When the Trump administration’s new guidance allowing ICE to target schools was first announced, school districts nationwide reported a drop in attendance—with some classrooms seeing as many as two-thirds of students temporarily absent.5 Even just the threat of ICE presence is already spreading fear and panic, negatively impacting school environments and disrupting learning.
Keep ICE out of schools!
We can organize to protect those vulnerable in our communities and ensure schools are a safe and protected space for children and families. Trump’s ramped-up immigration surveillance is turning schools into targets, and our students are looking to their teachers and schools for protection and safety.
But we need ALL school districts to do everything they can to keep our students and educators safe from the Trump administration’s increased immigration surveillance.
Will you sign the petition calling on local municipalities to protect students’ right to learn?
The majority of Americans oppose arrests in schools and other safe zones, and the majority also disagree with separating families.6 These policies and practices are unpopular and harm entire communities. But there are steps we can take to defend against the Trump administration’s attacks on our children and communities.
With federal protections weakened by the Trump administration, school districts must pledge to:
- Prohibit immigration officials from entering schools if they don’t have a judicial warrant7
- Ensure ALL students know their rights, including that they cannot be made to share their immigration or residency status with an ICE agent
- Train all school personnel to be able to identify ICE agents and respond in ways that protect students
Thanks for all you do.
–Nakia, Mia, Isbah, Olga, and the rest of the team
You’re receiving this petition because we thought it might interest you. It was created on MoveOn.org, where anyone can start their own online petitions. You can start your own petition here.
Sources:
1. “Trump’s expanded ICE raids are causing big problems for some schools,” USA Today, February 27, 2025
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/02/24/trump-ice-raids-scare-students-cause-absence-schools/80051020007/
2. “SOURCES: ICE deports family of five, including US born kids, after DPS detainment near Austin school,” KXAN, May 8, 2025
https://www.kxan.com/news/sources-ice-deports-family-of-five-including-us-born-kids-after-dps-detainment-near-austin-school/
3. “Keeping ICE Out of Classrooms: How California Leaders Are Stepping Up Efforts,” KQED, February 6, 2025
https://www.kqed.org/news/12025930/keeping-ice-out-of-classrooms-how-california-leaders-are-stepping-up-efforts
4. “Immigration agents turned away after trying to enter LA elementary schools,” The Guardian, April 11, 2025
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/11/los-angeles-schools-immigration-officials
5. “Trump’s expanded ICE raids are causing big problems for some schools,” USA Today, February 27, 2025
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/02/24/trump-ice-raids-scare-students-cause-absence-schools/80051020007/
6. “Most Americans Oppose ICE Raids in Schools, Hospitals, and Churches,” Campus Safety, February 7, 2025
https://www.campussafetymagazine.com/news/most-americans-oppose-ice-raids-in-schools-hospitals-and-churches/167216/
7. “Immigration Enforcement Guidance for Schools,” ACLU, March 17, 2025
https://www.aclu.org/documents/immigration-enforcement-guidance-for-schools
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