Monday, August 18, 2025

Leaders Reassure Pasadena Families: Schools Are Protected From ICE Raids

By EDDIE RIVERA

PUSD press conference is a show of solidarity as a new school year begins

On the eve of a new school year, the rotunda of Pasadena City Hall filled with the sound of collective resolve. Nearly a hundred local leaders — from elected officials to clergy, educators and community advocates — stood shoulder to shoulder Sunday afternoon in a symbolic show of unity, sending one message to families across the city: Pasadena schools will remain havens protected from federal immigration enforcement.

The press conference, convened by the Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD), came against a backdrop of heightened federal activity by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. For immigrant families, that activity has stirred fear at a moment that would otherwise be marked by the joy of returning to classrooms.

State Senator Sasha Renée Pérez, who chairs the California Senate Education Committee, set the tone with an urgent call to action.

“We are living in a climate of fear and distrust,” she said, condemning what she described as “inhumane policies promoted by President Trump” that leave children and parents bracing for raids and abductions.

Pérez highlighted her Safe Act legislation, which would require immediate parental notification if immigration agents appear on campus, and require judicial orders before schools grant federal agents entry.

“If President Trump wants to pick a fight with California,” she said, “he’s going to be in for the fight of his life.”

Mayor Victor Gordo, himself an immigrant who grew up in Pasadena, spoke of the city’s deep obligation to protect its children.

“I had the great honor and privilege of growing up in this community, a community that embraced me, a community that educated me, and now a community that gave me the greatest honor and privilege to serve as its mayor,” Gordo said.

He promised parents that “Pasadena and this community that stands behind us will protect those children. We’ll protect the parents as they bring their children to and from work.”

The show of unity on Sunday included a broad array of leaders: U.S. Congresswoman Judy Chu, Assemblymember John Harabedian, Pasadena City College President José Gómez, PCC Board Chair Alton Wang, PUSD Board President Jennifer Hall Lee, PUSD Superintendent Elizabeth Blanco, and members of the PCC Board of Trustees, as well as Victoria Knapp, president of the Altadena Town Council, along with members of the Pasadena  City Council. Together, they outlined both the threats facing local families and the safeguards in place.

Chu, who has been outspoken in her opposition to stepped-up federal deportation measures, told students directly, “We support you, and we will stand up for you as you return to school.”

She detailed her efforts to inspect detention facilities and advance legislation — the Visible Act — requiring ICE agents to display identification and be held accountable.

“No child deserves to live in this kind of fear, especially when they should be returning to school excited to see their friends and to learn new things,” she said.

Harabedian echoed that sentiment, calling it “sad and tragic” that families must worry about raids on the eve of a new academic year.

“The day before schools open up, it’s usually a day of joy,” he said. “Instead, we’re here having to reassure families.”

He linked the current anxiety to a broader national story: “We are all immigrants here today,” he said, insisting that the American dream rests on protecting newcomers rather than targeting them.

Blanco, who leads the 14,000-student district spanning Pasadena, Sierra Madre and Altadena, underscored PUSD’s policies.

“The PUSD does not and will not collect any information on immigration status or share it with any government agencies,” she said. Since January, the district has expanded resources, trained staff on lawful responses to enforcement actions, and emphasized trauma-informed care. “We encouraged [families] to live in caution, not in fear, because nobody deserves to live in fear,” Blanco said.

Hall Lee drew on both constitutional precedent and district history, citing a 1982 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Plyler v. Doe, that bars schools from denying education to children based on immigration status. She also recalled a 2016 PUSD resolution establishing “Safe Zones for Students Threatened by Immigration Enforcement.”

“Our children are safe in their classrooms,” she said. “These are private spaces. We look forward to welcoming every child back to school tomorrow.”

At Pasadena City College, where many PUSD graduates pursue higher education, Gómez emphasized continuity across institutions.

“Schools and colleges in Pasadena are safe, welcoming places for every student, no matter their background, no matter their education status,” he said. “Their success depends on all of us standing united.”

The district has also directed families to online resources, including guidance on legal rights, free legal aid through community partners, family preparedness plans, and information on virtual learning options for those who prefer to keep children at home. Families are also urged to update emergency contact information to ensure rapid communication in the event of any crisis.

By the close of the event, the rotunda had become both a rally and a reassurance session. Leaders spoke not only as officials but as parents, neighbors and former students of the same schools now under scrutiny. The image of nearly a hundred figures flanking the podium was itself a message: that Pasadena intends to shield its children from fear as classrooms reopen.

“Tomorrow at 8:00 a.m. when you walk your children to school, every single person in our community… will be watching,” Gordo told families. For a district still healing from the Eaton Fire’s devastation earlier this year, the promise of protection carried even greater weight.

The pledge from City Hall was clear: education in Pasadena will be a refuge, not a risk.