Since inauguration, the Trump Administration has made a point of targeting international students, faculty and other workers in higher education, beginning with those who have stood up for Palestinian human rights and soon thereafter on Chinese students and faculty. While they failed to deport many of their highest profile targets such as Mahmoud Khalil and Rümeysa Öztürk, many colleges and universities complied in advance, as they have done in response to segregationist attacks on trans students, racist and misogynist “anti-DEI” policy change demands on education, employment and research funding policies.

It wasn’t just their amazing personal willpower that has enabled students to beat the Administration in court, but rather also the solidarity in struggle forged by campus organization which has been in the making for years prior to Trump’s current term. In Maryland, we’ve seen chapters of the Young Democratic Socialists of America, Students for Justice in Palestine, Muslim Students Association, campus unions, individual organizations and thousands of students fight to protect each other, not just from deportation, but from anti-trans segregation and mass layoffs as well.

This page is intended as a public space to collect resources for students who want to establish policies and organizations to protect their (K-12 or college) campuses and fellow students from the fascist federal program. If you have resources to share, or would like to have your organization added as a sponsor of a statewide Sanctuary Campuses campaign, please email us at sanctuarymd@proton.me.

Resources

Sanctuary Campus Baltimore pledge – University of Baltimore YDSA created this pledge document for Baltimore campuses to declare themselves Sanctuary Campuses and make specific promises to protect their students from ICE. School administrators can sign on by requesting edit access from their authorized work email address. The pledge reads:

• Whereas, Baltimore is not a recognized sanctuary jurisdiction 
• Whereas, universities nationwide have declared themselves as “Sanctuary Campuses,” adopting several measures to protect immigrant students, including, but not limited to, Portland State University, Reed College, Wesleyan University, Pitzer University, Santa Fe Community College, University of Pennsylvania, Connecticut College, Drake University, Swarthmore College
• Whereas, Baltimore universities strive to protect immigrant students 
• Therefore, be it resolved that the undersigned universities:
  • Publicly declare themselves to be a “Sanctuary Campus”
  • Bar Immigrations and Customs Enforcement Officers from entering campus without a signed warrant from a Judge
  • Direct campus police to not enforce immigration law
  • Refuse to share student immigration status with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement 
  • Pledge to work with deported students to complete their education through options such as distance learning 
  • Pledge to support undocumented students with options such as financial or legal support

Participating Organizations