According to a statement from Education Minnesota, attendance throughout many school districts “dropped sharply” in January, at the onset of Operation Metro Surge.
MINNEAPOLIS — Educators and other school officials from across Minnesota announced they filed a lawsuit Wednesday to block the federal government from performing immigration enforcement operations on or near public school property.
According to a statement from Education Minnesota, attendance throughout many school districts “dropped sharply” in January, at the onset of Operation Metro Surge. The lawsuit said some districts reported declines of nearly one-third, while some reported attendance dropping below half.
The lawsuit, naming former and current Border Patrol Commanders, Greg Bovino and Rodney Scott, respectively, as well as border czar Tom Homan as defendants, comes in response to several reports of students being detained and held by immigration enforcement agents.
“Students can’t learn, and educators can’t teach, when there are armed, masked federal agents stationed within view of classroom windows, sometimes for days on end,” said Monica Byron, the president of Education Minnesota. “We feel a moral obligation to use our voices.”
“ICE and Border Patrol need to stay away from our schools so students can go there safely each day to learn without fear, and so that our members can focus on teaching instead of constantly reacting to the shocking and unconstitutional actions of federal agents.”
Education officials said they want ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents to be barred from operating on or near school property and school transportation routes, “absent from extraordinary circumstances.”
In a press conference on Tuesday, Gov. Tim Walz spoke about the impact recent ICE raids are having on children and their families, calling on the federal government to reveal just how many children from Minnesota have been detained as well as their current whereabouts.
He also called for an end to enforcement in schools.
“The removal of long-standing protections around schools has had immediate and real consequences for our learning community,” said John Magas, superintendent of Duluth Public Schools.
“We’ve seen increased anxiety among students, disruptions to attendance, and families questioning whether school remains a safe and predictable place for their children. Schools function best when families trust that education can happen without fear, and that stability has been undermined.”
The lawsuit details several instances in which children were targeted by immigration enforcement near school buildings, bus stops and dismissal areas, claiming that, in doing so, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security “failed to adequately consider the educational and community impacts” when it rescinded prior guidance limiting enforcement in sensitive locations.
“The decision to abandon long-standing protections for schools has injected fear into classrooms and thrown school communities into chaos,” said Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward.
“We are in court because children should never have to look over their shoulders at school or worry that their loved ones could be taken away at the schoolhouse gate, and because the government cannot undermine decades of settled policy without regard for students, educators, or the law.”
When asked about next steps, Fridley Superintendent Brenda Lewis said, “I just want ICE out of our schools, all of our schools.”
Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin response to the lawsuit:
“ICE is not going to schools to arrest children—we are protecting children. Criminals are no longer be able to hide in America’s schools to avoid arrest. The Trump Administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement and instead trusts them to use common sense. If a dangerous illegal alien felon were to flee into a school, or a child sex offender is working as an employee, there may be a situation where an arrest is made to protect public safety. But this has not happened.”
Education Minnesota and the districts are not using any taxpayer money to fund the lawsuit, as they say two law firms picked up the case pro-bono.