ICE Out + an Interview with Mariame

Title: Kicking ICE Out of Our Schools and Communities

Author: Rethinking Schools

Argument: The authors argue that educators are the backbone of defending the youth against ICE and need to continue to come as a community of learners to be able to dismantle the injustices of other human beings. 

Talking Points:

1. In this journal what stuck out to me was, “One Big Beautiful Bill,” passed in July, funds the largest increase in immigration enforcement spending in U.S. history by slashing funds for Medicaid and food assistance that millions of Americans rely on. $28.7 billion, which would make it one of the top 20 largest military budgets in the world. I attached a quick google search to see how an ICE agent gets paid in comparison to a police officer and a teacher. 

           

I find it fascinating that for the "best country in the world" the government decided that barring millions of people ranging through infants to elderly from basic necessities. Reading that I wanted to see what the averages are for an Ice agent, police officer, and teacher. Unfortunately I know that there is such a wide range of pay due to the area of where someone is teaching or policing and that the salaries are probably underpaid but instead of keeping the city generally safe, and educating our millions of students from k-12 we are pretending that there is a larger issue. That wrangling undocumented people who may not even have a real criminal record is more important that medically aiding, feeding, educating and servicing the rest of the country. But I don't expect too much from the president who is a certified felon but claiming anyone with a tan is illegal while his hue his orange. Teachers wear so many hats and deserve to be the more important and paid positions in the country. They are the foundations for students but cannot help build their student futures when there's already a targeted wrecking ball coming in.

2. A quote that stuck out was "An essential part of keeping our schools safe is asking ourselves who are our potential allies in protecting students" Luckily at the schools I work in where ICE has been seen around there is a good amount of teachers and administration that can keep these kids safe. They are very prideful of students backgrounds and cultures, whether its the same as the educators or different and know that at least the students in these schools have faith in many of their teachers. Although I'm not assigned in a school and come from a community based organization, our scholars know that although they must be documented we try everything in our power to provide a safe environment for them and their families throughout our program. We have ways about navigating FAFSA and other college processes to work within the limits of what we can and can't assist with.

3. Later in the article it states, "According to UTLA leaders, enrollment across Los Angeles Unified has dropped by roughly 20,000 students this school year in conjunction with the increased ice presence in our city..." and continues, "Hoffman worried that the escalation of ICE raids would once again force students — particularly those who are or who have family members who are undocumented — to stay home as a way of avoiding ICE." I wrote about an ICE experience in the comments of one of Darryl’s posts. There was a day in Providence where I was attending one of my schools to meet with my scholars. They were contacting me asking if I saw ICE outside because there was a raid nearby. I drove around the areas that were reported and let them know they were gone. They were scared for their friends and already were starting to organize community efforts to keep each other safe. I also wrote that in the beginning of the school year we have meetings with all school guidance teams. One of our schools head of guidance said they leave a whole MLL class empty and wait for it to fill up once the school year starts. This year that didn’t happen. There are a mass of children who are unable to commit to academics and learning due to the fear that ICE will get involved. This country which claims to pride itself in education is depriving students from it due to their status.

  

Connections: For a connection there was a mention of RAZA, "Guadalupe Carrasco Cardona, ethnic studies teacher and chair of the LA chapter of the Association of Raza Educators (ARE) told us that ARE “decided that during the summer of 2025, we would raise funds and deliver groceries to families as a mutual aid campaign" It was a relief to know that RAZA is still in tact despite the Precious Knowledge documentary showing that their classes were taken away. It shows the lack of character politicians have when they tear down something that can be amazing and rewarding because they feel a certain way. In our program we just had a student run his own personal drive to collect hygiene products for people. He received many donations. We have some students in extenuating circumstances and we personally put in money for food, donate clothing, attend protests and try to help and impact families to show they have community.

In It for the Long Haul: Increasing the Possibility of Freedom and Liberation for All: An Interview with Mariame Kaba

Mariame responded in an amazing way from an interview she did with Rethinking Schools. She mentions "As an educator, you’re always making things. You are constantly iterating ideas and generating questions. You’re also doing that as a learner." which was named earlier in the ICE out article "Educators need to be learners" Teachers need to take a seat and take part in conversations, asking questions they may not know and make sure they understand why and how their job is being effected and effecting their pupils. She is focused on creating liberation for all and need educators to be on board. She lists a few ways in which educators can bring these "radical" ideas into the classroom. "Create a social dreaming lab for students and find out what your students long for, what their deepest desires are, and their biggest dreams for themselves, for their families, and for the world." I looked into similar things that I could use for our high school aged students since her Queenie attachment was geered towards younger students. She says children are the best to have the "harder" conversations with because their questions force you to think differently in finding the right thing to say. This ties in with the educators needing to be learners and find the different answers students are looking for. Furthermore Mariame says "I see action as the basis and the foundation for any practice of hope...We have to choose to take action and we have to choose to remember that it’s for the long haul." I thought this was a powerful way to end the interview to remind everyone that its not easy. You have to really show support, more than words, action is needed for a change to occur.

Reflections: In my program, we are government funded and are only able to accept students with documentation. In prior years we could accept students in the early process of becoming naturalized but this year it was very strict. We had to cut out many applicants due to their different statuses and its unfortunate that they are seeking out opportunities to better themselves and those who are born here skating through life couldn’t care less. Opportunities are wasted due to a social construct where a piece of paper allows someone to be “legal” on "claimed" land. When there was a spike of ICE agents coming into our students neighborhoods I had seen a tik tok post with red cards. I was visiting a school the next day for interviews and on my way back to the car I saw one on the ground. I picked it up and went online to print my own to hand to my students for their peers and family members who may not be documented. There are different versions but this one included Spanish and English.