We’ve Been Here Before: ICE Raids, Resistance, and the Work of Educators
As I sat down to think about what to write for this week’s blog post, I was pulled in several directions. It’s still Caribbean Heritage Month. It’s also Black Music Month. There’s so much richness to explore in music, memory, and legacy, but I could not stop thinking of these headlines. This weekend, the ICE raids in Los Angeles shifted my attention. It’s one of those moments where you feel the weight of what’s happening now and the way news rolls in wave after wave, leaving our heads on a swivel and our hearts heavy.
On LA, ICE, and History Repeating Itself:
On Friday afternoon, ICE agents began raiding immigrant communities in LA. Protests and unrest ensued, and the National Guard was called in. This brings up memories of other moments when “law and order” was deployed to suppress, not protect. Symone Sanders Townsend of MSNBC posted a powerful reminder that this isn’t new. She walked us through historical precedents: Eisenhower in 1957 to protect Black children integrating schools, JFK in 1962 to quell segregationists at the University of Mississippi, the senior President Bush in the wake of the Rodney King verdict in 1992, and President Trump during the George Floyd uprisings in 2020.
Her question is essential: When presidents deploy the National Guard, who are they protecting—and who are they suppressing?
That history matters, and it’s not abstract. It lives in our cities, our classrooms, and our families.
The Local Echoes:
Closer to home, I’ve seen similar headlines in New York—ICE activity on our streets, people detained in broad daylight. These moments remind me why I do the work I do. At Sajes Ed, our mission is to cultivate spaces where educators can respond, not just react, to injustice. That’s the heart behind Building Bridges, the course I’m offering this summer.
Why I Created Building Bridges:
Building Bridges: Collaborating with Refugee and Immigrant Families to Improve Student Outcomes is a course designed for K–12 educators who want to strengthen their relationships with immigrant students and their families. Yes, it’s professional development. But it’s also a political and ethical stance. It’s a way to say: All our children deserve safety, dignity, and belonging in our schools, regardless of immigration status.
In the course, we unpack communication strategies, family engagement, and asset-based mindsets rooted in cultural responsiveness. We also talk about how to navigate harmful systems while advocating for the communities we serve.
👉 You can learn more via The Pedagogy Portal here on our site.
Amplifying Our Collective Voice:
This moment calls for us to stay grounded and connected. One of the most powerful things I saw over the weekend was a group of community members on the back of trucks with megaphones, reading legal rights aloud to those being detained. That image stays with me. That is the work: amplifying truth, affirming humanity, making sure no one stands alone.
We’ve been here before. And we’ve always had strategies, songs, stories, and each other.
Let’s keep building, learning, and showing up.
