In Times of Crisis, Actions Speak Louder Than Words

Last week an unarmed U.S. citizen was shot and killed by a federal agent on the streets of an American city. It made me wonder whether we’re all so ground down after 12 months of flood-the-zone actions from this administration that we will ignore what this means.

Universities and their allies (including me) like to talk about independent academic institutions as pillars of democracy. Where are institutions in this moment of crisis, when Americans are being killed by their own government? If a solution to our country’s social unraveling doesn’t come from higher ed, who will provide it? Colleges and universities hold huge influence in their communities. They can mediate differences and foster healthy debate. Indeed, several institutions have established schools of civic life that would, presumably, raise the alarm when constitutional rights are being violated. Academic research influences policy and informs public conversations. Scholars can put this violence into context and help remind us that this is not OK.

I was reminded that universities should have a voice in this mess when Brian Hemphill, president of Old Dominion University, released a statement about the death of Renee Good, the woman who was killed. It made sense that Hemphill would speak on this issue because Good, a mother, was an Old Dominion alum. But Hemphill went beyond the typical statement about losing a member of the community and said it is our duty as citizens to “call upon leaders and officials to restore civility in all facets of our lives, especially at the hands of those who are entrusted to protect and serve.”

Though neither bold nor controversial, his words made me realize how much we needed a response from our institutions of truth and knowledge. Someone had to call out how the government has failed us by creating the environment where a tragedy like Good’s death can happen. We all needed something bigger and better than ourselves to acknowledge the collective terror that we’re feeling.

Hemphill’s statement is a rarity. Since the attacks on higher ed began almost immediately after President Trump took office, institutions have spent a lot of time signing letters and debating the validity of institutional neutrality. At this point, that is a distraction.

What matters more is action. That’s how colleges can show that they deserve our trust. A president told me last month that the thing keeping him up at night isn’t the budget or enrollments: It’s an ICE raid on campus. He said he and his team had been going through drills and reviewing know-your-rights FAQs.

Last month leaders at Augsburg University, also in Minneapolis, stood firm when armed ICE agents came onto their campus and tried to detain an undocumented student. The Minnesota Star Tribune reported that staff from Augsburg’s Department of Public Safety responded when ICE agents in an unmarked car followed a student into a parking lot on university property. Staff followed protocol and immediately requested a judicial warrant. More agents showed up, “pointing weapons at the crowd and pushing witnesses back,” Provost Paula O’Loughlin wrote in a campuswide email. A senior administrator again asked for a judicial warrant and agents refused, saying they didn’t have one.

“It did get to a point where the ICE agents got pretty belligerent,” President Paul Pribbenow told the Star Tribune. “They had guns drawn and pointed at staff members.”

Agents ended up detaining the student. But again, Augsburg acted. The college said it is in contact with the student’s family and attorney and has begun consulting its own legal counsel. It locked all academic buildings and allowed students who felt unsafe going home to remain in campus housing through the winter holidays. Faculty were encouraged to be flexible around coursework and attendance. The university called the incident what it was: “unacceptable, dangerous, and profoundly disturbing.”

These are the acts that build trust and confidence from a community. It’s not just undocumented students who feel terrorized by masked federal law enforcement in our streets. Many of us are worried for our neighbors, our students, our friends and colleagues. We’re frightened by the rising authoritarianism in the country. And, chillingly, Renee Good’s death shows us that we’re right to be scared.

Some in higher ed will say it isn’t universities’ role to comment on anything beyond their core mission. And in fact, some, like Florida State College at Jacksonville, Pensacola State College and the University of Florida, have welcomed ICE to delegate federal authority to their own police forces. Campus safety officers are now immigration enforcement officers.

ICE continues to carry out raids in nearly every state. University leaders know this. Instead of spending time wordsmithing statements or crafting marketing campaigns to rebuild the contract with the American public, colleges can take action and show the public that they’re worthy of our trust by refusing to accept what is happening in our country.