Columbus, OH – Today, the ACLU of Ohio sent a letter to the presidents of Ohio’s public colleges and universities, urging them to avoid unintentional complicity in President Trump’s inhumane and unlawful immigration policies.
Amid the federal government’s continuing scale up of its immigration enforcement operations, particularly on college and university campuses, the letter reminds leaders at Ohio’s public universities that there is no legal obligation to participate in federal immigration enforcement. Partnering with the federal government could jeopardize the integrity of these educational institutions and erode trust in the school community. To date, much of the government’s immigration enforcement on college campuses has been unlawful and manipulative, including retaliating against international students for engaging in constitutionally protected activities and undertaking efforts to unlawfully deport international students holding valid non-immigrant visas.
“We urge leadership at Ohio’s public colleges and universities to protect the safety and legal rights of their international students from government overreach. We have seen the federal government manipulate universities into carrying out their unlawful immigration enforcement by suddenly and without notice terminating thousands of international students’ statuses across the state. Ohio’s educational institutions have no duty to act as an enforcer of ICE, and doing so undermines the integrity of these institutions,” added Freda Levenson, Legal Director for the ACLU of Ohio.
The ACLU of Ohio urges university presidents to reject participation in federal immigration enforcement to protect the constitutional rights of all students, staff and visitors on their campus.
