News Update

Schools, colleges designated as areas protected from immigration enforcement

Schools, colleges, preschools, day care centers, school bus stops and children’s playgrounds are all named as protected areas where immigration agents should not arrest, search, serve subpoenas or conduct any other enforcement action, according to a new memo from the Department of Homeland Security.

The new policy announced Wednesday restricts immigration and border protection agents from conducting enforcement actions at or near places where people access essential services or activities.

Medical facilities, places of worship, domestic violence shelters, food banks, emergency response centers, funerals and demonstrations are also on the list, which the department made clear was not a complete list of all places that are off-limits.

“We need to consider many factors, including the location in which we are conducting the action and its impact on other people and broader societal interests. For example, if we take an action at an emergency shelter, it is possible that noncitizens, including children, will be hesitant to visit the shelter and receive needed food and water, urgent medical attention, or other humanitarian care,” reads the memo.

Under the Trump administration, there were reports of more enforcement actions at or near schools and other protected areas.

“Over the years, I have met children and families who have shared their fear of carrying out simple everyday activities, like going to the grocery store, playground or even to a doctor’s appointment,” said Wendy Cervantes, director of immigration and immigrant families at the Center for Law and Social Policy, a nonpartisan anti-poverty organization, in a news release. “All over the country, I encountered stories of immigration agents waiting for parents to drop off kids at school, sometimes forcing children to witness their parents’ arrest at the start of a school day. No child should have to live in constant fear of losing a parent, and this policy will help ensure that immigration enforcement is carried out in a way that does not impede children and families from going about the essential activities in their lives.”

The policy replaces a previous 2011 policy, which was less comprehensive, and used the term “sensitive locations” rather than “protected areas.”

The memo says there are some limited circumstances under which agents can enforce immigration laws at protected areas, such as if there is a national security threat, an imminent risk of death, violence, or physical harm to a person, or a risk that evidence material to a criminal case will be destroyed.