DETROIT—A powerful display of immigrant and worker solidarity took place at a Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) board meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 11, led by teachers and community members from one of Detroit’s most vibrant immigrant communities.
The contingent was organized by the People’s Assembly (Asamblea Popular), a grassroots coalition from Southwest Detroit, to demand that the school board strengthen its 2019 Sanctuary District Policy, arguing that escalating raids require an equally escalated defense.
Despite the school board’s opening remarks affirming their awareness of increased Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity and their dedication to protecting immigrant students, three Detroit Federation of Teachers (DFT) members from Western International High School—Kristen Schoettle, Heidi West, and Frank Espinosa—took to the mic during public comments to insist that the district’s existing sanctuary policy was not enough.
“A lot has changed since 2019,” Schoettle stated, emphasizing the need for sanctuary policies to protect immigrants across the entire city. “It’s not only about Southwest Detroit…it’s certainly not the only place where immigrants live in the city of Detroit.”
Schoettle cited the sanctuary policies of the Chicago and Los Angeles school boards and urged Detroit school administrators to adopt similar policies, such as additional counseling, further protections for staff affected by immigration status, and a formal refusal to collaborate with any local law enforcement that assists in carrying out ICE raids.
West further urged the extension of sanctuary protections beyond just school grounds to include nearby parks and public transit. “I’m asking you to strengthen our sanctuary policy to include the outdoor areas and let the Detroit Police Department [and] the bus system know that we as DPSCD should not and will not be cooperating with ICE at all, anywhere, when it comes to our students and their families,” demanded West.
Espinosa concluded the contingent’s demands by emphasizing the fear felt by families to leave their homes, even to drive their children to school, and demanded the school board provide safer transportation. “We need to get our newcomer students to school and need to support increased transportation initiatives,” he declared.
The demands made by teachers at the DPSCD school board meeting are a reflection of the broken promises made by Detroit’s school system: Schools are supposed to guide children and provide them with an environment allowing them to grow into the best versions they can be. As long as ICE is routinely separating families and provoking dread in communities, however, schools cannot fulfill that mission.
One of the slogans used by DPSCD is “Students Rise; We Rise.” But teachers, parents, and activists have been asking: How can students rise without a guarantee of protection and solidarity?
As the Trump administration’s ICE raids continue sweeping country, this clash between aspiration and reality becomes increasingly unavoidable. The Nov. 11 school board mobilization was not the first hosted by teachers of the Peoples Assembly. In May 2025, an 18-year-old student named Maykol Boyaga-Duarte was detained by ICE during a traffic stop. Outraged, the community demanded that he be released in order to complete his high school diploma.
The People’s Assembly packed over a hundred people into the school board meeting at that time at Martin Luther King Jr. High School. At the center of their campaign was Boyaga-Duarte’s mother, who spoke in defense of her son. The DPSCD school board was swayed by public demand for the student’s return home and issued a statement that same night in support.
Yet, despite public support from the community, the school board, and even Michigan politicians like Councilwoman Gabriela Santiago-Romero and Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, the federal government still deported Boyaga-Duarte from the country. The incident showed the need, activists argue, for stronger defense systems to combat the kidnappings and abductions of neighbors, friends, and students.
Building working-class power for immigration defense
Formed in December 2024 in Southwest Detroit, the People’s Assembly was formed in response to systemic failures in the treatment of and politics against immigrants. It is a broad coalition of those who live and work in Detroit. Community leaders, religious figures, residents, and especially teachers represent the main core of the coalition.
Its structure is a blueprint for working-class defense against fascism, which includes three main teams operating on different fronts of the struggle.
- The Migra Watch Team (or the Patrollers team): Patrolling local streets and neighborhoods and documenting regular ICE activity, sending community calls for rapid response when needed. It serves as the eyes and ears of the community.
- The Mutual Aid Team: Providing legal and material resources for families torn apart by ICE and addressing the immediate needs of impacted residents.
- The Political Education and Communications Team: Organizing rallies, trainings, and publicity materials to combat the anti-immigrant rhetoric of MAGA politics while further building working-class unity.
In all three teams, rank-and-file teachers have been at the forefront of the immigration defense fight, building bridges between their students, families, and the community at large. Their proximity to the community in their roles as educators and caretakers for students offers a unique position in the struggle to build worker and immigrant solidarity.
Teachers are the crux of the intersection of struggles faced in Detroit, such as housing and food disparities, labor power, and freedom from violence. Through the People’s Assembly, Detroit’s residents are building a unified struggle for a future where the needs of the people are centered and prioritized. Through shared solidarity, they are fighting back against the fascist threat.
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