Parents tell Red Wing school board of alleged ICE activity and racially harmful quiz in schools
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Summary
Two public commenters told the Red Wing Public Schools board that masked men they identified as ICE have been seen near bus stops and that a racially harmful quiz circulated at the high school; callers urged the board and community to protect students and demanded follow-up.
At the Jan. 27 Red Wing Public Schools board meeting, two public commenters described incidents they said endangered students and harmed school climate, urging the board to act.
An unidentified resident told the board people in unmarked cars with masks have been observed at bus stops in town, and said families and children are frightened. The speaker alleged a recent assault on a 7-year-old on a school bus and reported students had been taunted with threats of deportation. The commenter also said the NAACP had sent a formal letter to the district and had not received a response.
Paige Caswell, who identified herself as a parent with two students in the district, said a racially harmful quiz circulated last fall in the high school and that her son and other children were significantly affected. Caswell said families are fearful and that children are changing routines — including one child she drove to school because he was afraid to wait for the bus — out of concern about profiling and safety. "No parent should ever have to say that," she said, urging the board to look "honestly at ourselves" and address the harms.
Board members did not take action during the meeting; public-comment guidelines were read aloud earlier in the agenda and the board typically provides a later written summary of steps the district will take in response. Board members discussed meeting notification and transparency but did not announce any immediate operational changes at the meeting.
The public commenters called for clearer responses from district leadership and community vigilance at bus stops. The board accepted the public comments under its procedures; the district said it would provide a summary of the district's actions in response to public comment "to the school board, individuals submitting public comments, and/or the public at a later date as appropriate."
