George W. Bush opened the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) campaign with over two million deportations. Barack Obama followed with 3.1 million. Coming into his second term, President Donald Trump promised “the largest mass deportation in U.S history” and an agenda to deport more than 10 million. In the past year alone, the number of people detained by ICE has more than quadrupled, rising from 14,557 people on Jan. 12, 2025 to 59,644 on Jan. 29, 2026. The shift from border patrol to armed enforcement within our own cities is coupled with an uptick in violence against immigrants and citizens that we have never seen in our lifetimes. The killings of Renée Good, Alex Pretti and Keith Porter, the detainment of 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and the fierce protests in Minneapolis should stun us into reckoning with what ICE has become.
Political conversations in the classroom are infrequent. Students and teachers avoid the full truth for fear of triggering uncomfortable arguments. In our experience, conversations about ICE at the high school have followed the same path. But this Editorial Board believes that detaining 5-year-olds, pepper-spraying people on the ground and shooting a citizen who was already subdued is wrong on all accounts, and we urge that the entire political spectrum look at ICE’s abuses through a human rights lens.
When we back down from difficult conversations, we abandon this high school’s mantras. As students, we have a responsibility to be informed and acknowledge current events; as citizens, we have a responsibility for one another, including those beyond Brookline; and as caretakers, we must hear and honor the names of the people we have lost and ensure they fuel greater change.
Holding meaningful discussions can be as simple as setting aside time to talk in engaged, academic environments, such as social studies or English classes. Students and faculty can discuss facts, share opinions, ask questions and check in. Students want to talk, and students will listen.
The rising tension and unrest that has taken over Minneapolis continues to spread. Though ICE attacks might feel distant from us in Brookline, we cannot sit back and ignore them. ICE has been in the Boston Area for decades. With anti-ICE protests bursting forth in Brookline, Amherst and New Bedford following recent crises, it’s clear that ICE’s tactics are gaining a wider audience and impacting immigrant communities closer to home.
We may not have a solution for ICE yet, but continuing to neglect what’s going on isn’t the answer.
There are always ways to remain informed, educated and actively supportive of those impacted by ICE. You can report sightings of ICE activity by calling the LUCE hotline (617-370-5023) or filling out anonymous online forms. Though it can be difficult to influence politicians at the national level, contacting our local and state representatives can push legislation to limit ICE’s operations in Massachusetts.
Amid this chapter of uncertainty and turmoil, we’re reminded of another one of our mantras: “This is hard. You can do it. We will help each other.” We hope its message can help us navigate these trying times as a school and community.
