Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have been spotted across Charlotte and Raleigh over the last two weeks. They were seen entering schools to obtain immigrants they deemed illegal. As ICE presence increases, community concerns have grown. This sparked several questions about whether ICE has the right to enter a school and what students should do if they come.
Mr. Bollhoefer, an assistant principal at Green Hope High School, shared the legal authority ICE has when entering schools and what students should be aware of. “The only way they can enter schools is if they have an actual warrant that states explicitly, from a judge, that they are able to enter the building.” Similar to police entering a home to make arrests, if they do not have a signed warrant by a judge, they are legally not allowed to enter the building.
In the scenario ICE does approach the school and gets in to detain students, the staff are under strict guidelines that they are not supposed to interfere. The staff would also, in this scenario, “contact district personnel that then support us from a legal perspective of things,” stated Mr. Bollhoefer. The staff is not obligated to give out personal information about students in regards to immigration status, because one’s immigration status does not affect a child’s ability to attend school.
In 1982, a court case made its way to the Supreme Court about immigration status when attending school, which was called Plyler v. Doe. This stated that, “A state cannot prevent children of undocumented immigrants from attending public school,” according to the Justia Supreme Court Center. A state can only interfere if a substantial reason or interest is involved, giving any immigrant child the right to attend a public K-12 school. This guarantees that all people of the state will be protected under the Equal Protection Clause.
The Equal Protection Clause was enacted under the 14th Amendment, stating that anyone in the jurisdiction of the state will be protected under the same rights as an American citizen. This means that, today, any immigrant within a state’s bounds will be protected by its laws, the same as any citizen. So, when an ICE agent makes their way to the school, any immigrant student will be seen as a citizen under this amendment clause.
“You don’t have to tell them anything, really,” stated Mr. Bollhoefer when asked what a student should do if confronted by ICE. He advised that students should contact parents and advisors if it were to come to that. In a newsletter sent out by the Wake County Public School Systems (WCPSS) by superintendent Robert P. Taylor, they mentioned their unwavering loyalty to students and staff, “Our primary mission is, and always will be, to provide a safe, welcoming and inclusive learning environment for every single child, regardless of immigration status.” Immigration status hasn’t mattered when attending school for over 40 years, and won’t matter now, according to this letter regarding ICE.
ICE or Border Patrol agents haven’t made their way to Green Hope, but if that event were to happen, students are instructed to contact their parents or guardians. Students shouldn’t worry about being targeted while in the grounds of the school, “students are safe here,” stated Mr. Bollhoefer. Students shouldn’t feel pressured to come to school if they don’t feel comfortable, but should correspond with teachers if they feel like taking time away due to immigration.
