LA school graduations will have 'safety perimeters' in light of ICE enforcement

Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times on Jun 9, 2025

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LOS ANGELES — Federal immigration arrests taking place in Los Angeles at peak graduation season are prompting school leaders to speak out and take safety measures.

Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said Monday that L.A. School Police would establish a safety perimeter around graduation venues where immigration enforcement activity might occur, based on reports of agents.

He also said that lines into venues would be minimized and that families could remain inside venues for as long as necessary should agents initiate a raid outside or in the neighborhood.

“I’m addressing you, there are two schools in our community that within a couple of blocks we see federal vans parked,” said Carvalho. “No action has been taken, but we interpret those actions as actions of intimidation, instilling fear that may lead to self deportation. That is not the community we want to be, that is not the state or the nation that we ought to be.”

Carvalho runs the nation’s second-largest school district. Some 100 graduation-related events are scheduled on Monday and Tuesday.

Carvalho said that a virtual option would be provided when possible for families to watch a graduation ceremony online.

A flier circulated earlier Monday calling for students to walk out of class to protest immigration arrests.

Carvalho said that students’ rights to protest would be respected but he asked families to ask their students to remain on campus when expressing themselves for safety reasons.

Carvalho also defended the basic mission of the nation’s second-largest school system, saying that L.A. Unified is following the law when it provides an education to all students and provides food for them through breakfast and lunch programs.

It is vital that families update their contact and emergency information with their school, Carvalho said. He also advised families to prepare backup plans should caregivers be taken into custody.