On Wednesday, education justice and immigration advocates joined Every Child NC outside the North Carolina General Assembly to rally against House Bill 10. Lawmakers used this legislation as a vehicle for to increase spending on private school vouchers, while also mandating North Carolina sheriff offices work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) if they arrest someone and determine that person is living in the country unlawfully.
In addition to Education Justice Alliance (EJA), North Carolina Budget and Tax Center, Student Action with Farmworkers, Pastors for NC Kids, North Carolina Association of Educators, and Red Wine and Blue were among the groups who showed up to protest the budget. Letha Muhammad, Co-Executive Director of EJA and Co-Chair of Every Child NC, was the first speaker of the day. She shared a message of support for families of public school students and let them know they are never helpless or alone, “We’re here whenever it’s necessary for the people to be heard.”
Several other speakers shared the same sentiment, vowing to push back against the steady stream of legislation siphoning money from North Carolina public schools. “Here’s the frustrating part, institutionally speaking, our public school system has never done right by Black and brown children,” said eleventh grader Giancarlo Nolasco. The Chatham County student spoke passionately about how it’s nearly impossible for students to perform at their fullest potential because of the constant cuts to public school funding, “We’re struggling because we don’t have the resources that we need.”
Private school vouchers are a point of debate in several states because it has been proven that the programs are detrimental to the growth and success of public schools. The North Carolina Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM) predicts North Carolina’s private school voucher expansion could decrease public school funding by nearly $100 million in the first full year with expanded funding.
Speakers at Wednesday’s press conference also addressed HB10’s mandate that North Carolina sheriff’s offices must comply with ICE requests to hold people who have been arrested and are believed to be in the country illegally. Speaking about how this mandate will impact students, Drew Washington, a youth organizer with EJA, pointed out how the legislation increases the potential for students to be targeted by school resource officers, “So not only have schools become less enjoyable for students due to issues related to lack of funding, some students now have to worry even more about the School-to-Deportation pipeline, which targets and funnels students into immigration procedures that lead to the deportation process.”
Layla Ali, Co-Director of Every Child NC, spoke from personal experience about intimidation tactics used by law enforcement, “I saw my people and people in my family and in my community live under siege and surveillance, be separated from their families, and be shaken to their core when they’re approached by police.”
North Carolina’s Latine population has skyrocketed over the past ten years. According to OSMB reports, between 2010 and 2020, the population grew by 40% to 1.1 million people. The agency predicts if these trends continue, the Latine population will double by 2050. That means more young people will be in need of our support and encouragement to learn how to advocate for themselves and persevere.
If you or a student you know has been harmed by a school resource officer, fill out the SRO Complaint Tool. This resource allows EJA and our partners to help a parent and/or student submit and track formal complaints when the rights of the student are violated by a school resource officer and/or security guard.
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