Approximately 50 students gathered at the Fighting Stallions statue on Wednesday, Feb. 5, protesting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) action under the Trump administration.
Jaidenn Morales, a computer science freshman, and Diane Nolasu, a psychology junior, organized two protests separately. Students held signs and chanted in a peaceful demonstration. The event was not affiliated with Texas State.
“We’re speaking up for those who are very silent right now, and I know those who are the most silent are the ones who are the most scared,” Nolasu said. “I will not stand for injustice.”
Nolasu passed out fliers encouraging people to come to the protest that read, “Either you stand with justice, or you stand for injustice, there is no bystander when it comes to upholding human rights.”
Morales expressed similar concerns, saying families are being heavily impacted by deportations.
“It’s really hurtful that they’re targeting people who have not done anything wrong. Like, children going to elementary and just ripping [families] apart with no goodbyes, no belongings, no nothing,” Morales said.
Morales organized another protest last week on Wednesday, Jan. 29 to protest ICE raids.
KXAN reported ICE and the Drug Enforcement Administration have been conducting enforcement operations in Austin, San Antonio and Houston. In FY 2024, ICE conducted 25,951 “removals” in San Antonio.
ICE’s X account frequently posts numbers of immigrants detained daily, with 846 arrests made between midnight and 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 31.
“My parents are both Mexican immigrants who came to this country over twenty years ago. They have done everything other than the part of coming here the right way. They paid their taxes, they’ve done their dues, they paid their bills,” Ashley Rodriguez, a general studies senior who attended the protest said.
Trump’s executive order ordered “All appropriate action [shall be taken] to prioritize the prosecution of criminal offenses related to the unauthorized entry or continued unauthorized presence of aliens.”
Leslie Tejeda-Pena, a computer science freshman also said she showed up to protest for personal reasons and to show solidarity.
“I’m here just because my parents are immigrants, so this is, like, a really touchy subject for me,” Tejeda-Pena said. “I just wanna be here to support my community and let people know that immigrants are what make this country great and that this country was built on immigrants so that we can’t we can’t treat them like they’re any less than human.”
The TXST Monarch Center for Immigrant Students is an organization that provides resources to undocumented students, yet its page has been removed from Texas State’s website. Additionally, the Immigration Law section of the Attorney for Students website is “under construction.”
Texas State University has not yet made a statement on what on-campus changes, if any, will occur due to new immigration policies.
