Within hours of being inaugurated for a second time on Monday, President Donald Trump wrote a series of executive orders to crack down on immigration in the United States. This includes orders to mass deport undocumented immigrants, specifically people the administration said are criminals.
By Thursday, ICE agents have “arrested 538 illegal immigrant criminals including a suspected terrorist, four members of the Tren de Aragua gang, and several illegals convicted of sex crimes against minors,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X.
While these arrests have stoked fear across the country, institutions have said they will not cooperate with ICE, including schools.
David Perda, superintendent of schools for the Diocese of Worcester Catholic Schools, acknowledged “possible concern in Catholic school communities in the wake of the Trump Administration’s executive orders …,” according to a statement.
“While I am unaware of any activity involving ICE and Catholic schools in the Diocese of Worcester, I wish to remind everyone of the operational procedures already in place to protect your child and their personal information,” Perda said.
Perda lists the following procedures in the district’s statement:
- “We do not ask for the immigration status of a student or their family.
- “We do not share student records with anyone, except in rare instances when a court order or parental/guardian consent is provided.
- “We do not coordinate with ICE.
- “We will not allow ICE agents access to our school facilities without a criminal judicial warrant signed by a federal judge.
- “We do not release a student to the custody of anyone other than the legal guardian of record according to that child’s file or a person identified by the legal guardian’s notice in advance.”
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TAKE ACTION: Contact Bishop McManus at 508.791.7171 and let him know what you think about his comments.