DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - Des Moines Public Schools is partnering with local immigration agencies to host events for families who are in the country illegally. During a recent meeting at North High School, parents received advice on what to do if U.S. immigration officials come knocking at their door.
Even if students are here legally, the fear of family members being deported can affect their learning, district leaders said.
“Kids and families are scared right now, and it affects them in different ways,” said Rob Barron, a Des Moines school board member. “They’re going to bring that into the classroom.”
The events aim to quell those concerns.
In January, more than 250 immigrants packed a “Know Your Rights” gathering, but the numbers have dwindled recently, a direct result of more aggressive enforcement tactics, organizers say.
Since March there have been at least 19 deportations in Des Moines, according to Sandra Sanchez, an immigration advocacy director for the American Friends Service Committee, a Quaker organization that provides education and legal support for immigrants and refugees in Iowa.
A spokesman for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement could not confirm the number of deportations and declined to comment for this story.
But Sanchez said that makes meetings all the more important, despite how sparely they’re now attended.
Standing in front of a dozen adults on April 11, Sanchez explained in Spanish what legal rights are available to immigrants. Spotting a woman in the back of the auditorium, she gestured for her to come out of the balcony’s shadow.
“Some families are scared of exposing their undocumented status, at times keeping children from going to school,” she said.
The woman hesitated, but locked eyes, Sanchez waved again. Pushing a stroller, the woman walked forward slowly.
With subtitles in English, an ACLU video explains what to do if an ICE agent knocks: Respectfully decline to open the door; ask for the warrant to be passed under the door; check for the proper signatures. Don’t show false documents; don’t lie.
You have the right to remain silent and to ask for an attorney, the video said. In the audience, a woman in a ponytail bit her pen, and then scribbled notes. Looking at the screen, she bit the pen again.
At the meeting, volunteers shared reports they’ve heard of immigration officers wearing plain clothes or driving unmarked vehicles. They took questions and handed out a list of immigration attorneys.
Many Iowa immigrants still recall the 2008 immigration raid at the Agriprocessors plant in Postville, according to Isabel Conn, an immigration advocate and volunteer. It was one of the largest and most notorious raids in U.S. history.
Conn, who attended the meeting at North High, was in Postville after the raid. In the chaotic days that followed, she saw children who hid in a basement for as long as they could tolerate, waiting for family members who never came.
When they finally ventured out, “they went to the church, holding each other, asking for help,” she said. “That is still in my heart.”
“It’s the same fear” immigrants are feeling today, she said. “The fear of leaving children, the fear of immigration department.”
Under the Obama administration, policies focused on deporting undocumented immigrants with criminal histories; the administration deported a record 2.4 million immigrants, The Des Moines Register (https://dmreg.co/2nV9YYk ) reported.
In January, newly elected President Donald Trump directed federal agents to arrest other suspected immigrants in the country illegally they encounter during the course of their work - a distinct change in federal immigration policy.
“It’s creating a lot of fear,” said Maria Moser, a director with the National Council of La Raza, a Latino advocacy group. “It’s affecting a lot of people’s participation in civic institutions, schools, policing, health care, and we’re very concerned about those things.”
But many Iowans support stepped up immigration enforcement.
A 2015 Iowa Poll showed nearly half of respondents wanted to deport the estimated 11 million immigrants who are in the United States illegally. In Iowa, an estimated 36,000 immigrants are in the state illegally, according to the Migration Policy Institute.
Ira Mehlman, spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which advocates for stricter enforcement, said children can become akin to “human shields” for parents who are not authorized to be here.
“You have to remember who created the situation in the first place,” Mehlman said. “Anytime parents violate laws, there are going to be consequences for innocent family members. In every other circumstance, we hold the people who violated the law responsible.”
The fear of deportation - either their own or that of a parent or relative - can have a tremendous impact on children, Des Moines school officials said.
Immigration advocates said many families are keeping children home when they hear rumors of law enforcement activity. It’s unclear how widespread the practice is in Des Moines. The district does not track student immigration status, but data show attendance among Hispanic students was down slightly in February and March.
District leaders urge parents to continue sending students to school. “Not only is it obviously in the best interest of the child’s education, but our schools provide a safe place to them to be,” Des Moines schools spokesman Phil Roeder said.
Earlier this year, the district passed a “sanctuary school” policy that directs all immigration requests through the superintendent’s office for legal review.
An estimated 5,000 school-aged children in Iowa are unauthorized immigrants and about 14 percent of all immigrants in the state are here illegally, the Migration Policy Institute estimates. Most of those school-aged children attend public schools, which are required to educate students regardless of their immigration status.
Another estimated 27,800 Iowa children have at least one family member who is in the U.S. legally, according to an analysis by the University of Southern California’s Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration and the Center for American Progress, a liberal advocacy group.
Des Moines school officials say the “Know Your Rights” events are just another way to support families served by the district.
“This is no different than providing school busing, providing lunch, providing after-school activities, as a public school district there’s a lot of needs that we have to meet,” Barron said. “If we can provide some counsel and some assistance to families during a really, really ugly time in our country, we should be doing that.”
In the North High library on April 11, a volunteer shared the same “Know Your Rights” presentation in English with three women from Thailand.
While more than 70 percent of Iowa’s unauthorized immigrants are from Mexico or Central America, about 19 percent, or 7,000 people, are from Asia, the Migration Policy Institute estimates.
Many are also refugees that overstayed a visa or came to live with family who immigrated here legally.
“I see your English is pretty good,” said Conn, pausing the presentation to emphasize a point. “How long have you been here? Are you from here?”
One of them answered politely, sharing her story, but Conn stopped her.
“If I were an ICE agent, I would be asking you for documents now,” she said. “If you don’t show them to me, I’m going to detain you.”
“Ohhhh,” the women said, their breath drawn out in unison. Then they leaned forward, wanting to know more.
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Information from: The Des Moines Register, https://www.desmoinesregister.com
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