On January 28, thousands of UTLA members were out on the sidewalks of school sites across the district leafleting before and after school to remind families that LAUSD is a sanctuary district with safe zone policies in place.

Carver Middle Special Educator Karla Lawrence was one of thousands of UTLA educators handing out Know Your Rights flyers and talking to students’ families before school on Tuesday.

“I grew up within minutes of here,” Lawrence said. “It’s so important for me to be out here letting my community know that they have rights as immigrants because I grew up being undocumented.”

Lucina Isidoro, also an educator at Carver, said she has had students express fear over whether their parents will be deported.

“I’m trying to stay with the pacing of our curriculum,” Isidoro said. “But at the back of my mind, I’m always thinking if [the students] can focus on what we’re trying to do for the day.” 

The action demonstrated to our students, their families, and the public that together, we don’t back down in the face of fear tactics and we will keep standing strong to assert the right to a free public education for all students.