November, 2018
SAN MARCOS – After the proposal for new immigration reforms from President Donald Trump and a surge of white supremacy propaganda at Texas State University, students find themselves conflicted and concerned about the status of those on campus.
Under Trump, immigration policy has become more tightened, as his main reform is called the Four Pillars of Immigration, which includes stricter border security, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), eliminating the visa lottery and limiting green card sponsorship. At the local level, Governor of Texas Greg Abbott signed legislation, Senate Bill 4, that banned sanctuary cities, which protected immigrants from being detained.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in Texas, about 39 percent of the population is Hispanic/Latino. Since Mexico borders the state, it’s hard to account for how many people come over and are accounted for. Because of this, detention centers have a large presence; 13 facilities, according to U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
“I actually had a friend in El Paso who was at one of the little centers (detention centers) where they had the kids,” said digital media major Alexa Carbajal, 25, of Corsicana. “It’s absolutely heart wrenching. And El Paso and San Antonio are one of the biggest ports of, basically sex trade. And I don’t know if people think about that before they send them there or if they don’t even care. I think it’s horrible and should not be the case.”
Because of the high population of Hispanics, Texas State is a Hispanic serving institution with a 37 percent Hispanic population, according to Texas State demographics. Due to this, there are resources for those who are undocumented. These resources, however, do not protect students from ICE as the campus is not considered a sanctuary.
“I honestly think that it’s frustrating, because I believe there should be safe spaces, or spaces for them (immigrants) to be themselves,” said senior Jasmynne Flores, 24, of San Antonio.
“How would you feel if you came here and this is all you really know and you can’t acknowledge where you are from, because of back lash and feeling isolated.”
Along with the repeal of sanctuary cities, white supremacists have spread propaganda around campus causing an outcry from all students. One incident was the spread of flyers telling students to report those who are undocumented. While there have not been reports of outing undocumented students, some do express concern of who can remain and be protected.
“I feel like sanctuary cities protect criminals in my mind,” said senior Tim Alton, 23, from Austin. “Because I’ve been seeing what it’s been doing in California. I know it’s important for immigrant communities to feel safe reporting crimes but I feel like it also provides a gateway for criminals to take advantage of the system. I’m glad Greg Abbott made it illegal to classify yourself as a sanctuary city.”
Students who need protection can still seek help with an immigration attorney as a result of a student sit-in protest after Abbott’s bill. However, not all students agree on protections and help for immigrants.
“It’s sketchy,” said freshman Aaron Martin, 18, from Corpus Christi. “I’m okay with people going through the process legally getting their citizenship and coming over, or even visas, but they’re criminals if they come over illegally. Since DACA-mented people aren’t really full citizens, they shouldn’t have the right to have an attorney.”
For more information on student resources visit https://www.sdi.txstate.edu.
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