Student communities across the United States are gearing up for nationwide walkouts on Jan. 30 to protest against the recent fatalities caused by members of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency. On Jan. 7, Renee Nicole Good was fatally shot by ICE agent Jonathan Ross. Two weeks later, two federal agents fired at and killed Alex Pretti, who was accused of attacking officers and wielding a gun, despite these allegations being nowhere to be found in various videos of the incident. Recently, a Reuters poll indicated that 58% of respondents agree that ICE agents have gone “too far” in the midst of Operation Metro Surge. It is not difficult to see why.
ICE has been terrorizing U.S. residents for a long time, a reality especially heightened by President Donald Trump’s outward disdain for immigrants. Earlier this year, Case Western Reserve University President Eric Kaler released a statement highlighting Trump’s new proclamation, which bars entry to “individuals from Burkina Faso, Laos, Mali, Niger, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Syria and those with any travel documents issued by the Palestinian Authority.” Additionally, partial travel bans were placed on individuals from a host of other countries with predominantly black and brown inhabitants. These actions by the U.S. government are harmful, and, moreover, indisputably race-related, promoting white supremacy by targeting minorities.
Currently, we are witnessing families being torn apart—countless videos show ICE agents forcefully shoving people into small, confined vehicles taking them to even further inhumane conditions. We are watching people be killed for trying to report on the atrocities government agencies keep behind closed doors. We are hearing of operations such as ICE’s “Operation Catch of the Day,” which reduce real people to subhuman status and aim to remove those who have been here for years, maybe even generations, who have become part of the fabric of their communities. This is not okay. This is not normal. At times like this, community becomes even more important.
On Jan. 20, a gathering of Case Western Reserve University students organized a “Free America Walkout” on the Case Quad Binary Walkway, supporting a wave of national anti-ICE walkouts. Last Friday, hundreds of local businesses in Minnesota closed, and thousands of protesters congregated to demonstrate their disapproval of ICE’s unwarranted violence and the government’s interference in matters of immigration. The deaths of Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, and Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care unit nurse for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, only ignited tensions between U.S. residents and ICE. Religious leaders in Cleveland held a press conference on Tuesday to organize a walkout in Public Square on Jan. 30. The demonstration rallies for the eradication of ICE after recent news of Good and Pretti.
As people around the country gather to protest, we must encourage each other to care more. This past week in Cleveland, hundreds of students from Garrett Morgan High School assembled outside for a walkout during the school day, despite sub-zero weather conditions. At the Cleveland School of the Arts, students protested in University Circle. At CWRU, though, there is a more general culture of apathy. While the University Circle walkout was a great display of care for others, CWRU students, in general, seem very focused on their individual futures. As a school with many privileged individuals, working hard on academics to form a successful career, we often neglect to show adequate care for our community. And yes, it can be hard to muster up the effort when you have lab reports to write, interviews to prepare for and exams every other day, but maybe it’s time to stop and consider what this is all for. At this school, full of people pursuing careers in public health, engineering and high-powered leadership—shouldn’t the ultimate goal be serving the public good?