Seattle University suspends ICE partnership over 'unjust,' 'inhumane' treatment of im
Seattle University suspends ICE partnership over 'unjust,' 'inhumane' treatment of immigrants
By Jessica Chasmar - The Washington Times - Friday, November 16, 2018
Seattle University has suspended a law school externship program with Immigration and Customs Enforcement amid student pressure over the agency’s treatment of immigrants under the Trump administration.
Students began pressuring school officials to end their partnership with ICE after the agency participated in the school’s externship fair last month, Campus Reform reported Thursday.
Law student Alex Romero, who led the petition, argued that ICE’s externship ran contrary to the university’s mission to support undocumented students. School officials agreed, saying ICE’s presence on campus made students feel “unsafe” and that the agency’s externship would be suspended indefinitely.
“As of today, I am suspending our externship placement with ICE (US Immigration and Customs Enforcement) based on its current policies and practices,” law school Dean Annette Clark said in a statement, according to the school’s student newspaper, The Spectator.
“This action aligns with the fact that our law school is a signatory to the attached statement, which was issued by a consortium of Jesuit organizations in June 2018, and which condemns administration policies that have led to the unjust and inhumane treatment of asylum seekers and migrant families, practices that continue today and that directly affect members of our community,” she said.
Jill Dutton, director of the externship program, said the decision was made after thoughtful deliberation with university officials.
“Students raised concerns after ICE presence at our annual Externship Fair caused them to feel unsafe,” Ms. Dutton said, The Spectator reported. “We believe a real possibility exists that placing a student in an ICE externship may force them to act unethically or unlawfully.”
Steven Bender, the law school’s associate dean for planning and strategic initiatives, clarified that the program has only been suspended while the law school gathers information. It is unclear whether it will be terminated completely.
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