As Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity intensifies across Chicago, students and educators are confronting a new reality marked by fear that extends far beyond the traditional classroom setting. Reports of detentions and enforcement actions near schools have significantly heightened anxiety among families, leading to urgent calls from the Chicago Board of Education for emergency measures, including the potential implementation of virtual learning options. This developing situation underscores the fundamental tension between federal enforcement operations and the critical need to maintain a safe and accessible educational environment for all children.
The emotional impact on the community is deeply personal. Families and teachers speak of a city where children must navigate their daily routes to school under the looming shadow of raids, which not only disrupts their learning but also erodes trust in public safety institutions. A particular incident at Benito Juarez High School, where a 17-year-old student was detained on their way to school during an anti-ICE protest, vividly illustrates the profound challenge facing Chicago Public Schools (CPS) in its efforts to balance educational continuity with student protection.
Student Detained During Anti-ICE Protest
Concerns were voiced by some board members just hours after the Benito Juarez student’s detention, according to a letter sent to parents. The student was subsequently released without charges. The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately comment on the arrest.
In a letter to the community, CPS acknowledged the situation, stating, “We have received reports of federal law enforcement activity in a nearby neighborhood, and I am very sorry to share that a member of our school community was impacted.”
Educators Express Alarm Over Safety Concerns
The incident has left educators grappling with heightened anxiety within their classrooms. Liz Winfield, a teacher at Benito Juarez Community Academy, shared her experience: “I marked a junior student absent, not because that student was sick… it was because ICE had snatched him up on his way to school. It’s a sense of unease. It’s a sense of anger and frustration. It’s a lot of students calling in, or parents calling in saying, ‘I don’t feel safe.’”
Board Members Call for Virtual Learning Options
During Thursday’s board meeting, discussions naturally shifted to the possibility of remote learning as a vital measure to safeguard students. Board member Emma Lozano emphasized the urgency, stating, “Our parents are asking for remote learning if possible. It is an emergency. Period. This is an emergency right now. So we need to figure that out whether we go to the governor all together, we write a letter, we do what we have to do, we march, we do everything, but it is an emergency right now.”
Board member Karen Zaccor added, “I think we all understand that it’s very difficult, a lot of obstacles to that. I’m just hoping we can figure out a way to work together to make it work for the many families that are telling us they really are too fearful to allow their children to come to school.”
CPS Authority Limited Without Governor’s Approval
CPS CEO Macquline King clarified that the authority to authorize virtual learning in emergency situations rests solely with Illinois Governor JB Pritzker. She stated, “As a district, CPS does not have the authority to call remote learning. We should have a remote learning plan in the event of an emergency. But if the governor does not call a state of emergency, we do not have the ability to just send the district into remote learning.”
Students Living in Fear of ICE Presence
Students themselves are feeling the tangible weight of ICE enforcement in their daily lives. Destiny Singleton, an honorary student member of CPS and a senior at Ogden International School of Chicago, articulated this fear: “We feel the weight of ICE in our city and in our country. Students have been posting minute-by-minute updates on ICE agent locations in hopes to protect our fellow students. I feel like we shouldn’t do this because we’re children, and we shouldn’t need to protect ourselves in this way, and we are terrified.”
Chicago Teachers Union Advocates for Remote Learning
The Chicago Teachers Union has also strongly urged the district to consider remote learning as a way to alleviate these fears. CTU recording secretary Vicki Kurzydlo noted, “When a child stays home because their route to school feels unsafe, that’s not an attendance problem, everybody; that’s a failure of protection. I’m hearing from educators whose classrooms are half empty because families are scared.”
Federal Authorities Push Back Against Allegations
Federal authorities have attempted to counter accusations that ICE specifically targets schools. In a memo released last month, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin affirmed, “ICE is not conducting enforcement operations at, or ‘raiding,’ schools. ICE is not going to schools to make arrests of children.”
Mayor Johnson Condemns Escalating Enforcement
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has taken a firm stance against federal enforcement in schools, warning that such measures intensify fear and disrupt the learning process. “The illegal deployment of the National Guard in our city and the escalation of ICE raids do nothing to keep our young people safe. In fact, it makes them afraid and disrupts their learning,” he stated during an October press conference.
The school district did not immediately provide further comment on the situation.