FACES Leads Student Pushback Against ICE Presence Near Campus

FACES, an anti-racism student organization at Boston College, issued a statement on Oct. 10 condemning the presence of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) vehicle near BC’s campus, becoming the first student group to formally do so.

“FACES condemns the state-sponsored fearmongering by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on our campus and beyond,” the council wrote in a statement on Instagram. “We stand in unrelenting solidarity with immigrant and international students and staff, and all who have been impacted on this campus.”

In its statement, FACES also urged University officials and other student groups to release similar statements.

“We call upon Boston College to provide clearer and more consistent communication, and we invite other student organizations to come forward and acknowledge the reality of fear and dread that many students have been living in for months,” the council wrote.

The statement comes after four weeks of students calling on UGBC to denounce ICE activity near campus during public comments. While no UGBC student senator has publicly opposed the release of a statement, the Senate has not yet published or voted on a statement.

Although the FACES statement did not single out any particular student group, in a comment to The Heights, the council encouraged UGBC—and other influential student groups—to join it in condemning ICE’s presence near BC. 

“We especially hope that student groups with greater access and power to speak with the administration feel called to speak up,” FACES representatives wrote to The Heights. “We strongly urge UGBC to consider releasing a statement directly to the student body, particularly students directly impacted by the recent ICE sightings, attacks on immigrant communities, and people of color across this country.”

They also expressed hope that campus publications, including The Heights, would amplify the voices and experiences of international and immigrant students.

In addition to student organizations, FACES called on the University to issue a statement denouncing “ICE incursions and anti-immigrant rhetoric” and to address “the widespread fear among students and faculty.”

Aside from confirming ICE’s presence, BC administrators have not publicly commented on the Sept. 6 sighting.

“Boston College claims to reject ‘all forms of harassment, wrongful discrimination, and disrespect,’ yet there has been a complete lack of communication on the part of BC’s administration addressing this sensitive issue,” the statement reads.

FACES circulated a draft statement to administrators before release. University officials did not make any edits or alterations to the statement, according to FACES.

The statement cited an April 15 letter from University Provost and Dean of Faculties David Quigley and Vice Provost for Global Engagement Rev. James Keenan, S.J., as an example of past support but criticized the University’s lack of recent communication amid new developments.

“The absence of acknowledgement of recent ICE activity on the edge of campus demonstrates a lack of care for the people that Boston College serves,” the statement read.

In response to concerns that statements like theirs could attract scrutiny from the Trump administration and potentially further endanger vulnerable students, FACES representatives defended their decision to speak out.

“We understand that times are very tumultuous with growing censorship, budget cuts, and the administration’s possible concerns with these factors,” they wrote to The Heights. “However, moments of political turmoil have always tested the moral character of institutions and individuals. Standing for justice carries risks, but silence in injustice carries a greater cost in integrity and morality.”

FACES decried what it said was a culture of apathy and silence on campus.

“The growing fear and concerns on our campus cannot be swept under the rug, inaction and silence are never the answer,” FACES wrote. “In the words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, ‘Silence in the face of evil is itself evil. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.’”