San Diego Unified teachers, parents and students gathered at the Ballard Parent Center in Old Town Wednesday night to show solidarity following a divisive election. Hundreds ate dinner, made crafts and milled around resource booths as Mariachi music played.
District officials planned the event shortly after voters elected Donald Trump president and reports of vandalism and hate crimes spiked on school campuses across the country.
"The fears felt by some district students following the recent presidential election — fears that their friends, family, or loved ones are at risk of being harmed — pose significant barriers to (students') well-being and ability to learn," the board said in a resolution announcing the event.
It's fear Principal Fernando Hernandez has seen firsthand at Perkins K-8 School in Barrio Logan.
"Am I not an American? Even if I was born here, does it mean that I'm not accepted as other people are? Those are the kinds of conversations teachers have been having in the classroom in a manner that's most appropriate to the age level," Hernandez said.
His students are 92 percent Latino, and many are living in the country illegally or know someone who is.
Hernandez said teachers in lower grades have talked about inclusion and diversity with their students. Eighth-grade teacher Ruben Ortega immediately began fielding questions about President-elect Trump's proposed border wall and deportation force — a plan Trump has since softened, though he still wants to deport hundreds of thousands of individuals who are living in the country illegally.
"The morning after the election, the kids came to school very somber and my colleague and I, we got all 55 eighth-graders together just to talk," Ortega said. "That helped ease their fears."
Ortega said he's also turned to lessons on the Constitution to help.
"We've been learning lessons about how the president can't really affect so much of the rules because there's checks and balances," Rae Servantes, 14, said.
Trump can, however, quickly dismantle a program President Barack Obama created through executive actions to defer deportation for young people who were brought to the country illegally as children.
Hernandez said he helped parents sign up their children for the program, and now they're coming back to ask whether immigration officials can pull their children from school. They're also asking him what they should do if they themselves are deported — leave their children in the United States or take them to Mexico?
They're tough questions that Hernandez can't answer until more is known about Trump's policies. He said he's been referring parents to the Mexican Consulate, which also hosted an informational meeting at San Diego High School on Monday. He also assures them that K-12 schools do not keep immigration records.
"The only thing we ask for is a birth certificate, proof of vaccination, proof of residence. Those are the three things," Hernandez said. "And even the birth certificate, that in itself means nothing. It doesn't tell us whether they're here illegally or not. So we don't have any information that we could even provide."
In addition to Wednesday's celebration and informational meetings, Superintendent Cindy Marten sent an email to staff reaffirming the district's commitment to fostering safe campuses for all students and families. Hernandez said parents remain on edge. But the district's actions seem to have had an effect on students.
"Right after the election I felt kind of stressed, I felt kind of worried," said 13-year-old Jessie Leal. "And now I feel safe."
The school board has asked district staff by early next year to detail how they've assisted families and present a plan for moving forward under a new president.
