Milwaukee Schools Approve Safe Haven Resolution

MILWAUKEE, WI — Public school officials in Milwaukee will use “all legal means available” to protect students whose families are threatened with deportation under a school board-approved resolution Thursday that declares the district a safe haven. School districts across the country have taken similar action in defiance of President Trump’s hard line against undocumented immigrants and to reassure families that the school officials won’t share records that could cause their deportation.

Students, parents and faculty cheered the board’s unanimous decision in a standing ovation, according to media reports. Several of them spoke, urging board members to make school buildings safe places where students can focus on learning without the distraction of fear of an immigration raid.

Board members said they were moved by what they heard during the 90-minute comment period, and Superintendent Darienne Driver, who endorsed the measure, said those who spoke displayed courage.

“Seeing all of you here tonight makes us so proud. Words can’t really describe it,” Driver said, according to a report in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “It’s an honor to serve all of you … and to serve alongside leaders who have the courage to step up and stand up when it really matters.”

“In my life, I have had some high points I can feel good about, but I can say that this evening, and meeting with the students who supported this resolution has had a powerful effect on me,” board member Wendell Harris said, according to a report on WCCO-TV. “I will fight for you and for the rights of undocumented people, in honor of the slaves who worked to help build this country.”

Board member Tatiana Joseph understands better than most what the safe haven designation means to undocumented immigrants. Though now a legal citizen, Joseph lived in fear as a child that her family might be deported to their native Costa Rica, WITI-TV reported.

“Schools are sanctuaries … where children come to learn. … where children come for peace (and) for hope,” said Joseph, who co-sponsored the safe haven resolution

Those speaking in favor of the resolution included a 10-year-old who said she had been taught to stand up for the rights of others. Farouk Rashid, a 16-year-old South Division High School student, said he and his family came to Milwaukee legally in 2014 as refugees from Malaysia.“I want my school to be a sanctuary because I want my immigrant and nonimmigrant friends to be safe and sound,” he said

“Please, please protect our children,” said Pedro Martinez. “Don’t allow them to be afraid to come to school. Create an environment where they can … feel protected.”

Not everyone favored the resolution, however.

“Where does this stop?” asked Wendy Sobczyk, who opposed the resolution. “Are they going to allow felons on school playgrounds?”

Photo via Shutterstock