Only a handful of students attended the session meant to provide more information on recent executive orders. The session was led by Indianapolis immigration lawyer Jenifer Brown who spoke to students, faculty and administrators alike on Thursday Feb. 17.
“We wanted to provide some legal resources and information to the campus community,” said Vice President of Academic Affairs, Anne Harris.
Brown began her discussion by clarifying the immigration system and law, much of which, she pointed out, people are unaware of. “The last major immigration reform to speak of was in 1986. We have ignored fairly consistently the immigration circumstances in this country for the decade since,” Brown said.
Brown works for ICE Miller, a firm which has worked with and for the University for several years. In addition to Harris, Director of International Student Services Aliza Frame, Senior Human Resources Generalist Susan Hacker, and DePauw University President Mark McCoy partnered together to provide informational meetings for the campus, one of which was led by Brown.
For the past twenty years, Brown stated, immigration law has become increasingly complex. Within the past few months, its complexity has heightened immensely. Brown discussed the executive order on traveling, explaining to audience members the details within the order.
Students and faculty are also concerned about local authority’s enforcement abilities in regard to immigration. “They are not interested in your immigration status. They are interested in protecting the community and having you call upon them when witnessing a crime,” Brown said.
Brown also discussed the label “sanctuary campus.” Similar to the statement made by President McCoy in an email sent in December, McCoy and Brown both stated that adopting the label could potentially be misleading, as a sanctuary campus has different definitions depending on location.
Brown also stated that the label has no federal or legal power. The label provides no legal benefit for the campus and therefore cannot protect students and faculty in the instance of federal officials searching DePauw. DePauw decided against adopting the label and has not openly stated that they are committed to challenging the federal government in the event that Immigration Customs and Enforcement were to demand student records.
However, to students like first-year Brenda Rodriguez, DePauw could be doing more. “I know they are aware that there is a problem,” Rodriguez said. “I think, since they didn’t pass the sanctuary campus, I think that gave a lot of student’s fear, instead of hope.”
Whether DePauw had adopted the label or not, “DACA students are already registered with the government,” Harris said. Whether DePauw wanted to fight against warrants or subpoenas, Harris stated the University is still held to federal law.
Ultimately, the immigration session was meant to inform students, but more importantly encourage students to seek legal assistance, if so desired.“I think it’s important to be informed about the policies, those that have been implemented and those that are still pending, even if they don’t affect you directly,” said Rodriguez.
Harris said that students should take the time to schedule an appointment at a pro-bono law clinic. “That is the most effective thing you can do,” Harris said. “The University cannot be the legal counsel of the students.”