Panel Outlines Students Rights

The Know Your Rights presentation provided students and others concerned about immigration policies with information from the Education and Leadership Foundation (ELF) on March 10.

Audience members were informed about the educational services and immigration help that ELF offers.

“Information is empowerment,” adviser of the Students without Borders club Perry Angle said.

Angle said that information is especially important with the current state of the nation.

ELF is just one organization of many that can help students and others on their path to citizenship.

“It [the presentation] helped me to know I’m not the only Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) student,” Georgina Santos, business major, said.

Santos said even as a DACA student, people need to know their rights, such as having the right to stay silent if they encounter Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Certain rights and tips like having the right to be silent, not signing anything unless consulting an attorney and not opening the door if authorities arrive at their house were emphasized during the presentation.  

The most important thing for students to do is to know their rights, Immigration Services Outreach Coordinator Jose Martinez said.

ELF can refer those seeking help with completing applications for citizenship to attorneys and other experts to prevent fraud.

Martinez also said that immigration authorities can only take someone into custody if they have a cause to do so.

Chief of SCCCD police, Jose Flores, says that ICE can come onto campus if they have the cause to do so, but he doesn’t see that happening.

“I hate to see young people fearful of where they’re studying,” Flores said. “They’re not going to come get students that are studying.”

However, Flores said that the campus police will collaborate with ICE if the suspect is wanted for a horrible crime.   

Furthermore, a spur of uncertainty about the state of students in the country illegally has been awakened with President Trump’s election.

The Fresno City College campus has services like the Dream Center that can refer students to services like ELF to assist with any questions regarding immigration.

“There’s a lot of uncertainty right now,” Graciela Ramirez, lead counselor of the Dream Center said.

I want to encourage undocumented students to seek help from the Dream Center, Ramirez said. She said the Dream Center is a safe place for undocumented students from any country. Ramirez wants to students to know that the campus will not release any confidential information.

Instructors and concerned citizens can help by fighting for more resources for undocumented students, Martinez said. Instructors can make calls to representatives and write letters of recommendation for students that are completing rigorous applications.

First time applicants of DACA are encouraged to wait to apply due to the uncertainty of policies that might be implemented or taken away.

Those that have DACA should continue to reapply when their current one expires.  

FCC president Carole Goldsmith was also present at the Know Your Rights presentation and answered a few questions regarding FCC becoming a sanctuary campus.

“Higher education from community college to CSU to UC have all come out…about standing with our undocumented students,” she said.

Goldsmith wants student to feel safe about not getting arrested, but also to feel safe so that they will not become a victim of a crime and will report a crime when they see one.

For more information about the Dream Center, visit the office in the Student Services Building Room ST-108 or call (559) 443-8570.