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LAUSD equips students with 'red cards' to defend their rights when encountering immigration agents
Red card distributed at LAUSD schools.
(
Andrew Lopez
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Boyle Heights Beat
)
This story was originally published by Boyle Heights Beat on Jan. 24, 2025.
This week, schools across the Los Angeles Unified School district began distributing “red cards,” also known as “Know Your Rights” cards, to help people assert their rights and defend themselves if they encounter federal immigration agents.
The effort comes as the Trump administration announced Tuesday that it would allow Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to conduct arrests in sensitive areas such as schools and churches, dismantling policies dating back to 2011.
The cards, from the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, are red, about the size of a credit card and list directions on how to respond if approached by immigration agents.
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Experts say that preparing a plan with your family is essential in the event of an emergency. Here’s a guide to help coordinate childcare, support your child, find legal services and gather necessary documents. -
The New American Initiative offers assistance with DACA renewals, green card applications and citizenship classes. -
Undocumented immigrants and mixed-status families are learning how to assert themselves — and prepare for worst-case scenarios.
Students at Roosevelt High School in Boyle Heights said they received cards on Thursday detailing their rights in both English and Spanish.
Brooklyn Avenue School teacher Elisa Fonseca holds up a red card distributed at LAUSD schools. Photo by Andrew Lopez.
(
Andrew Lopez
/
Boyle Heights Beat
)
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Elisa Fonseca, who teaches at Brooklyn Avenue School in East Los Angeles, said she was glad to be passing out cards to students at her school where she estimates many may be a part of mixed-status families. She said her school received 200 cards and hoped they’d be getting more.
Dr. Rocio Rivas, LAUSD School Board member representing many Eastside schools in District 2, said she had urged the district to provide schools with timely, accurate information and resources for students and their families, including red card distribution, “regardless of immigration status.”
As part of its response, the district said it was providing training and resources to educators and also relaunched a 2017 initiative through a campaign called LA Unified 2025: We Are One, which offers resource guides, trainings and webinars for students and families.
You could print your own Red Cards here in several languages.
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