Campaign Action
The Palo Alto school board joined the resistance this week when it voted 4-0 to make its campuses "sanctuaries" for undocumented students. Jacqueline Lee writes:
The resolution says Palo Alto Unified School District officials will not interfere with law enforcement but will not cooperate with immigration enforcement action except as required by law.
Requests from federal immigration agents for students’ information will go to the superintendent for review and approval unless there is an immediate threat to public safety.
The resolution also means that the district will not disclose personally identifiable information in a student’s educational records to agencies without written parental consent, judicial order or a subpoena.
This separates the school district from the city of Palo Alto, which is not technically a sanctuary city. It’s also a stance that more and more school districts are adopting in anticipation of the incoming administration.
School boards in Minneapolis, Denver, and Los Angeles have also recently taken steps to declare safe havens and remind families that ICE agents are not allowed on campus.