SAINT PAUL, Minn. – A bill to only allow federal law enforcement into Minnesota schools if they have a warrant doesn’t pass in the House Education Policy Committee.
The bill failed in a 7-7 party-line vote.
DFL State Representative Heather Keeler of Moorhead voted for the legislation and said students of color are doing distance learning because they’re afraid of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers coming into their schools.
“This is a moment in history that generations who are not born yet are going to ask ‘What did you do? What did you do when you had an opportunity to stand up for what is right? When you had an opportunity to protect your kids in the schools?'” Keeler said.
Republican State Representative Peggy Bennett of Albert Lea, the co-chair of the committee voted against the bill. She talked about testimony from students, educators and union leaders.
“I did not hear about ICE agents roaming inside our schools. I hear about across the street. The fear, I totally understand that. In our education purview here, we’re just about what’s happening in our schools,” Bennett said.
