The Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration has intensified fear for many immigrant communities in Portland and across the nation. 

Passed in July, Congress’s H.R.1 (“The One Big Beautiful Bill Act”) allocated $170.7 billion to the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), funds going towards detention and deportation of undocumented immigrants.

Junior Rangan Krishna volunteers as a teacher at Mission: Citizen, a student-run nonprofit that educates U.S. green card holders about the civics portion of the naturalization exam. Krishna stressed that money spent on immigration enforcement could be reallocated to build a better system for immigration.

“[The money is] better spent working on building to be better in the future, to work to handle the number of immigrants coming through,” said Krishna.

The combination of Portland’s status as a sanctuary city and the recent increase in protests caught President Donald Trump’s attention. In a news conference on Sept. 5, President Trump described Portland as “like living in hell,” and signaled that he would be sending National Guard troops to enhance immigration policy enforcement, similar to what happened in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles over the summer. 

Activists across the country have been pushing back against the increased hostility and racial profiling by the organization. Protestors of ICE in Portland gather, both peacefully and not, at the ICE building on S Macadam Avenue, which is now covered in graffiti. 

In February, the Cardinal Times published “PPS works to protect immigration rights following President Trump’s executive orders,” an article explaining the school district’s policies on immigration and the rights of immigrants. According to PPS’s Immigrant Rights FAQ, the district “will NOT provide information of assistance to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the enforcement of federal civil immigration law unless they provide a court order; provide immigration officals access to school property beyond the front office; remove a student for immigration law enforcement without a court order; inquire about, collect or maintain record related to student immigration status.”

College coordinator Aliera Zeledon-Morasch added that staff know the protocol.

 “[Staff] will…not let them [ICE] into the building before we [legally] have to,” said Zeledon-Morasch.

Aside from protesting, there are ways for Lincoln students to be advocates for our peers. In addition, we have the power to be advocates in spreading awareness. 

 “We have a responsibility to take care of other students who may be uncomfortable about the presence of these officers, even if we can’t do anything specifically about it,” said Krishna.