A national coalition of faculty members, campus workers, students, and alumni has launched the Schools Drop ICE campaign, calling on colleges and universities to cut institutional ties with corporations that contract with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Developed in collaboration with the AAUP, the initiative connects campus organizing with broader movements focused on immigrant rights and corporate accountability.
Higher education institutions, through purchasing decisions and institutional partnerships, often lend legitimacy and financial support to companies that provide technology, transportation, and other services to ICE. By using their collective economic and moral influence, colleges and universities can help weaken the corporate infrastructure that sustains the immigration detention and deportation system that is increasingly targeting students, staff, and colleagues on campuses.
AAUP President Todd Wolfson has called on faculty members and campus workers to confront the fear and instability created by aggressive immigration enforcement. To support organizing efforts, the coalition is hosting national webinars that connect campus community members interested in identifying institutional ties to ICE contractors and in building cross-campus campaigns for divestment or policy change.
Citing recent local victories in which universities and corporations agreed to end ICE-related contracts, the coalition hopes the Schools Drop ICE initiative will mobilize the higher education community to act collectively and encourage institutions to reconsider relationships with companies involved in immigration enforcement.
For more information and to get involved, visit https://schoolsdropice.com.