California state senator proposes bill requiring schools to report ICE agent visits
From parents and students to teachers and administrators, reports of immigration enforcement raids are sparking fear in Southern California schools.
Monica Cano has two children in the Pomona Unified School District. While both are citizens, the reported ICE raids has made her nervous for her family's well-being.
"It's scary," Cano said. "We have to make a plan."
State Senator Sasha Renee Perez (D-Pasadena) introduced Senate Bill 98 to hopefully ease some of those fears. The proposed legislation would require schools to notify parents and teachers if ICE agents were on any school campus. Perez said it would utilize the school's emergency response systems to send the messages.
"They're very fearful of what may happen to their children and that uncertainty is driving the anxiety of what our families are feeling when they're sending their kids to school," Perez said.
The fear has grown since President Trump's administration rolled back policies that made schools "safe spaces."
"I understand he's trying to deport so-called 'bad people,'" Cano said. "But, people with families who are doing good here, are paying taxes — only just working, why them?"
Dozen of people spoke out in Riverside earlier this week as the Board of Supervisors looked for ways to help immigrants in its communities.
