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Board member Brenda Campos Pitse recounts 2006 workplace raid, invites community to "Know Your Rights" event
Summary
At the Jan. 13 work session Brenda Campos Pitse (board member) described community fears stemming from past workplace immigration raids and invited residents to a free "Know Your Rights / Conos Casos Derechos" event scheduled for the next day. She also highlighted Project Teacher Find and legislative listening sessions board members attended.
GREELEY, Colo. — Board member Brenda Campos Pitse used the Jan. 13 Greeley School District No. 6 work session to acknowledge community anxiety around immigration policy, recount the district’s experience after a 2006 workplace immigration raid, and invite residents to a local “Know Your Rights / Conos Casos Derechos” event.
"There is fear and uncertainty being experienced by many of our students, their families, and our staff with the upcoming presidential inauguration," Campos Pitse said. She referenced a 2006 immigration enforcement operation at JBS and five meat packing plants that she identified as the largest workplace immigration raid in the community: "almost 300 people were arrested," she said, describing how the arrests separated families and forced the district to provide immediate supervision for some children.
Campos Pitse noted that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has an internal agreement to avoid arrests at sensitive locations such as schools, churches and parks, and she said she hoped that policy would remain in place. She invited the community to a free "Know Your Rights / Conos Casos Derechos" event hosted by Alfred de Lucia at Kimberly's Event Center on Jan. 14 at 5:30 p.m.
"I wanted to acknowledge that that is happening and that's out there," Campos Pitse said, speaking in a personal capacity and explicitly noting she was not speaking on behalf of the board.
In the same segment of the meeting, board members highlighted other community and district programs. Campos Pitse and others mentioned Project Teacher Find, a 36‑year partnership between the district and UNC that helps recruit and grow teachers from local students; the board noted that student applications for that program were due Jan. 24 and encouraged counselors to share it with candidates.
Why it matters: Board members said the comments were intended to acknowledge community concerns and to promote local resources for residents seeking legal information. The district did not adopt any formal policy or action at the Jan. 13 meeting related to immigration enforcement.
The board did not vote on any measures connected to immigration or the community event; Campos Pitse spoke as a board member in a personal capacity and invited public participation in the community program.
