In September, Smith college joined 165 other higher education institutions throughout the state of Massachusetts in signing an Amicus brief opposing the Trump administration’s revocation of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program. This comes in anticipation of the upcoming supreme court decision on the legality of DACA, which the Trump administration initially rescinded in September 2017. Arguments on the case began Tuesday, Nov 12. This ruling will impact the future of some 700,000 young immigrants.
DACA offered work authorization and temporary protection against deportation to young undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children, a group which includes many current college students. This status, which lasted two years and was renewable, did not provide a pathway to citizenship. If the court declares DACA illegal, its recipients will be stripped of their protections, and may be vulnerable to deportation. But what does this actually mean for undocumented students at Smith, and how will Smith support them if DACA is ultimately declared unlawful?
Raven Fowlkes-Witten ‘17, who is the Program and Outreach Coordinator for the Office for Equity and Inclusion, is the point person for undocumented students on campus. When reached out to, they replied via email that they are “…fully committed to supporting the needs of undocumented students,” but did not provide further comment. This is Fowlkes-Witten’s first year in the role.
President McCartney also affirmed her support over email, writing that “…the preservation of DACA is of utmost importance to me, and to our campus.” When asked what actions she would take were DACA declared unlawful, she responded that Smith would “take no voluntary action that would put members of our community at risk because of their citizenship or immigration status,” and that the college would additionally “resist releasing information about students’ citizenship or immigration status.” She went on to say that the college would seek legal counsel before taking steps to comply with any subpoenas or other imperatives related to undocumented students.
On the Smith College website, the college states that undocumented students applying to Smith are “evaluated in the same way as U.S. citizens and U.S. permanent residents,” regardless of whether they have DACA or not. The college also expresses a commitment to offering its undocumented students the same opportunities as documented students. Whether or not this will change if DACA is rescinded remains to be seen.
Smith Students for Social Justice and Institutional Change (SSJIC) issued several demands specifically relating to undocumented students this past spring, including a demand for a “well-trained point person” to assist and advocate for undocumented students at Smith. This is a role that Fowlkes-Witten is presumably meant to fulfill. SSJIC did not comment for this article.
It is currently difficult to anticipate the case’s outcome — while the court leans conservative, Justice Neil Gorsuch has issued statements that make his position on the matter ambiguous. The court’s ruling is expected to come in 2020.
Update: On November 18th, President McCartney sent out an email to the Smith community reaffirming her commitment to supporting undocumented and DACA-mented students, reiterating the steps that Smith has taken to ensure their safety, and acknowledging that “A number of these changes came about through student awareness-building and advocacy.” The email also mentioned Fowlkes-Witten’s role in the process, but did not include any new information regarding actions the college may take if DACA is declared unlawful.
