Mass Deportation is Harming Kids This Back-to-School Season

Education experts discuss how Trump Administration’s Agenda is harming children, instilling fear.*

At an America’s Voice virtual press conference held today, educators, child psychologists, and immigration experts discussed how the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda is harming children and instilling fear this back-to-school season. Speakers highlighted the devastating impact on children’s mental health, classroom learning, and the role of schools as safe spaces. From absenteeism and academic disengagement to heightened anxiety and emotional distress, both U.S. citizen children and immigrant kids are paying the price of Trump’s deportation crusade.

Alberto Carvalho, Superintendent, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) said, “Schools must always be safe havens for learning, free from fear or disruption. Immigration enforcement activities have no place on or around our campuses, as they create an atmosphere of anxiety that harms every student, regardless of background. At Los Angeles Unified, we stand firm in protecting our students and families, ensuring that classrooms remain places of safety, trust, and opportunity.”

Noel Candelaria, Secretary-Treasurer, National Education Association (NEA) said, “All students deserve to start the new school year knowing they belong, are welcomed, and feel safe in our public schools – no matter the language they speak or their ZIP code.  No one – not Trump or ICE – should have the power to weaponize our government against our most vulnerable. They have abducted our students, separated our families, and terrorized communities. In the face of these assaults, we are inspired by the daily actions of courage and bravery by students, educators, and allies rejecting violence, and exercising their right to speak out. We stand with them.”

Listen to Experts

Fedrick Ingram, Secretary-Treasurer, American Federation of Teachers (AFT) said, “At the beginning of school, our students should be thinking about the curriculum, how they learn, and how they’re going to navigate the year. Unfortunately, too many are traumatized—seeing police, masked assailants, kidnappings, and people disappeared on the street—and then asked to go to school and do work on top of that. As educators, we know that is not good for our kids, our communities, or our families. The AFT stands strong, bringing our 1.8 million members as a vanguard of justice and equality for all people in America.”

Dr. Allison Bassett Ratto, PhD, Child Clinical Psychologist in Washington, D.C. said, “What is particularly worrisome to me as a child psychologist is that the stress, the anxiety and the trauma that develop in this climate of fear and uncertainty around immigration enforcement can become chronic, leading to both immediate and long term damage to children’s mental and physical health.”

Vanessa Cárdenas, Executive Director of America’s Voice, moderated the discussion and noted: “The usual first-day jitters of back to school this year have been replaced by fear. Kids are missing school, afraid to leave their homes. Parents are having to make plans in case they are disappeared. And teachers are having to be trained in safety protocols should they encounter ICE while schools are navigating these new realities. This is the hidden cost of Trump’s mass deportation agenda—not just economic devastation, but educational chaos and psychological scarring.”

Resources

• Access a recording of today’s virtual press event: HERE
• Read NEA guidance on immigration issues HERE
• Visit the LAUSD We Are One website: https://www.lausd.org/weareone 
• See here a breakdown of how the Trump administration’s mass deportation budget could be used to improve schools nationwide:
  • Instead of mass deportation, that same $170 billion could support public education across America:
    • Build over 7,000 new elementary schools in communities nationwide
    • Ensure kids can succeed in school and life by funding the Head Start program for nearly 14 years
    • Give over 3 million teachers who spend their own money on supplies an $800 annual classroom fund
    • Buy school supplies for over 45 million K-12 students for 4 years
    • Fund a $10,000 annual federal tax credit for all 4 million teachers for over 4 years

Follow Vanessa Cárdenas and America’s Voice on BlueSky: vcardenas.bsky.social and americasvoice.bsky.social and Twitter: @VCardenasDC and @AmericasVoice 

America’s Voice – Harnessing the power of American voices and American values

to win common sense immigration reform 

Find them at www.americasvoice.org

*This Press Release is from America’s Voice on August 28, 2025. Please find the online version HERE at their website where you may also contribute to help further their important work.