The increase in ICE agents in MN has affected people. ICE has been targeting Hispanic/Latin, Somali, and many more communities. Students and staff at RAHS have been personally affected.
Students for this story were granted anonymity for protection. Student A, a freshmen at RAHS expressed how they felt about ICE in the community. They said, “It’s wrong and they should leave people alone”.
Another anonymous freshmen, who we will refer to as Student B, who we will refer to shared similar feelings toward ICE; they said, “It’s bad because people come to this country out of need… and they are deporting them because they think they are [illegal] immigrants.”
An anonymous junior (Student C) said, “ I think it’s very disturbing, especially as an immigrant myself. I live in fear and stress every day not knowing if I’d make it back home…It negatively affects how safe my family and I can feel.”
Chenayi Shava, English teacher at RAHS, also shared her feelings about ICE. She said, “I think it’s very upsetting and it’s very unnecessary…the community that we have in the Twin Cities is one of the best communities in the country and they do not deserve to be treated like that, they do not deserve to be living in fear…to be grabbed from their families…and to go through really horrible circumstances like what’s happening now.”
Robyn Madson, English teacher and Debate coach at RAHS, agreed with Shava about the treatment of people by ICE agents. She said, “…People shouldn’t be afraid to go pick up their kids from daycare and somebody gets picked up just out of their car on their way to get their kid or wherever…and then doesn’t get a fair hearing…sometimes not even a hearing because their put on a plane with whatever they were wearing…that’s inhumane and immoral.”
Student A, shared their personal experience with ICE. They said, “My dad was deported by ICE when I was nine years old and he hasn’t come home ever since.”
Student B, shared a similar experience with a close loved one that was taken by ICE. They said, “…my cousin that was working for Doordash, [ICE] took him and arrested him.”
Student C said, “I’ve had relatives ripped away from their own lives and families, deported away from everything they knew and back to square one.”
Shava also mentioned a story of a person she knows that has been taken by ICE. She said, “I know someone personally in our family that has been affected by ICE. We are currently dealing with that situation right now. They were taken away on Sunday afternoon. They had just gone to do some groceries for the family and they just happened to be accosted by a whole bunch of ICE officers…this person was taken because they’re not a citizen and the ICE officers didn’t care that they had other legal immigration status. They just took them regardless. So that is something that has been impacting my family right now.”
Madson said, “I have a friend whose daughter’s fiancé was deported before he even got a chance to a hearing.”
(Student A) expressed how they feel ICE affects our community. They said, “It’s just making people go crazy and all, and it’s not safe. We are losing a lot of immigrant workers…”
Shava also expressed that many people are coming together as a community to support each other. She said, “…not only has it created fear, it has also brought out the best in some of us. People are really working together to protect each other…the school district has a protocol that puts kids first…”
Madson gave advice to students who encounter ICE and how to navigate the situation. She said, “I think trying to make a lot of noise so that people notice what’s happening so there could be video…”
Shava expressed how she plans to help students during this time. She said, “We have to create space. Families are really impacted, when a child comes into a classroom and they just don’t seem like they are themselves, as a teacher I think I should take two minutes of my day and check in…”
If you are struggling emotionally during this time, reach out to the staff and community in the building. Set up a meeting with a counselor or school psychologist.
