Fascism is not a romantic notion of how the world ought to be – it is a violent plan for how to make the world fall to its knees.
Our communities must unite and build a leadership that is unafraid to act upon the principles of the inalienable human rights and the rights of Indigenous Peoples. While all schools are sanctuaries and constitutionally guaranteed safe zones, the Trump presidency and his minions have already threatened to divide families and imprison innocent people under threat of mass deportation raids.
Recognizing this urgency, LAUSD Board Members Ms. Garcia and Dr. Rodriguez are advancing an important LAUSD board resolution in defense of immigrant children and communities for initial announcement and a vote on May 9, 2017. We call on our entire community to support. Beyond a rhetorical statement of support, this resolution includes directives to administrators and staff on policies and protocols with which to address ICE and other entities seeking to deport California residents.
Following the imposition of the Trump presidency, Semillas del Pueblo joined with other community members and organizations to form a broad coalition of people to convene townhalls in December 2016. As a result of that work we helped to start California Rising, an alliance to advance the rights and responsibilities of the people of the State of California. We seek to switch the narrative from “run and hide” to “stand your ground” at a statewide level.
As educators, we in Semillas are particularly concerned about the safety and human rights of children, families and migrant Indigenous communities. Our work to advance the rights of our students and communities in our schools in the face of threatened mass deportations has led to the development of the CAlifornia Schools Are Sanctuaries (CASAS) Coalition. Our immediate focus is to disseminate the ACLU Sanctuary School model policies for adoption and implementation in every school in the state. As we do this, we seek to build a strong foundation for the on-going intersectional and international collaboration that these times will continue to demand.
Getting key partners such as the ACLU, NCLR and the CCSA to prioritize the urgent community needs we identify as school leaders is extremely important as we seek to leverage, diversify and amplify our communities’ demands.
It is time to stand our ground against threats to our homes, our schools, our city and our state!
Against one man, million will stand – if we act now. Support the LAUSD resolution in Reaffirmation of Los Angeles Unified School District Schools as Safe Zones for Families Threatened by Immigration Enforcement.
This month, the Council of Trustees of Anahuacalmecac, adopted the ACLU designed and disseminated policies to defend our students’ Constitutional guarantee to an education and safe school. These policies include a policy on Immigrant Students’ Rights on Campus, Immigration Enforcement on Campus, and a Prohibition Against Voluntary Information Sharing.
Anahuacalmecac calls upon all schools and districts, public and private to adopt the ACLU’s model policies as well.
Marcos Aguilar
Marcos Aguilar
(Azteca Mexicano) Marcos is Executive Director and Co-Head of School of Anahuacalmecac International University Preparatory of North America. Mr. Aguilar received a Bachelor’s degree in Chicana & Chicano Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1994. Additionally, he holds both a single subject teaching credential in Social Science and a Masters in Education Administration from California State University, Los Angeles. Mr. Aguilar is a trained consultant for the International Baccalaureate.