Schools across Illinois and the country will soon be resuming classes for the 2025-2026 school year and while many families and children are savoring the last days of summer break or eagerly anticipating new classes and experiences, many immigrant families are also safety planning in the event they are swept up in an ICE raid or are questioning whether it’s safe to send their kids to school at all out of fear of immigration enforcement activity in or near schools. Community members, advocates, and legislators at the Safe Schools for All press conference on 8/19/2025.
Earlier this year, immigrant and education advocates, led by the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF), the Latino Policy Forum, and the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR), along with members of the Illinois General Assembly, passed the first of its kind, Safe Schools for All, a bill aimed at making our state’s public K-12 schools places where immigrant parents could feel safe to bring their children. Just last week, Governor Pritzker signed the bill into law, making Illinois a national leader in protecting immigrant students and their right to an education...