Oregon teachers’ union pushes anti-ICE policies, implies some teachers are illegal immigrants  

An Oregon teachers’ union has negotiated anti-ICE language into its contract, tacitly admitting that some educators may be illegal immigrants.

The Woodburn Education Association (WEA) has reached a tentative agreement with the Woodburn School District regarding anti-ICE sections of a new contract. 

Proposed language includes: 

• “No educator shall be required to remain on site if they reasonably fear enforcement action.”  
• “Translation services will be provided upon request.”  
• “The district will provide up to 90 calendar days of unpaid, job-protected leave for immigration-related issues”  
• “Absences of 90 days or less due to arrest, detention or deportation will be treated as paid leave, except for cases involving violent or hate crimes.”  
• “Immigration status shall not be used to coerce, discipline or negotiate employment terms.”  
• And “all essential documents and required meetings shall be translated into the home languages of employees and families.”  

It also requires the district to only accept judicial warrants, rather than the administrative warrants typically used by federal agencies.

Woodburn has a large minority population, with 86% of WSD students identifying as Hispanic or Latino.

“Recent ICE actions targeting the most vulnerable populations in this community have created a pervasive sense of fear, not only among our students but among many of our colleagues as well,” WEA President and dual-language teacher Tony Salm said.

“Because it is incumbent on us as educators to do whatever we can to create a learning environment where our students feel safe and protected, adding some of those protections into our contract is the least we can do.”

The union itself appears to embrace communist values. Its logo – a red fist holding pencils – combines socialist and education imagery.

WEA’s website says the union promotes “social equity, respect, and protection for our members, students and community,” as well as “authentic inclusion.”

WEA’s new contract comes on the heels of a new Oregon law – HB 4079 – which requires schools to notify families if immigration enforcement action occurs on school property.

Rep. Lesly Muñoz, D-Woodburn, supported the bill but said it doesn’t go far enough.

“[HB 4079 is] painfully silent on the consequences of detention and deportation that may arise after ICE breaches campus, with no mention about employment consequences teachers face after a raid or incident,” Muñoz told local media. “This is why Woodburn teachers spent six months championing their own proposal.

“It underscores the importance of the role of unions in being the leaders securing these groundbreaking protections.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement prioritizes threats to public safety but doesn’t limit where ICE can operate.

“The Trump administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement and instead trusts them to use common sense,” the spokesperson explained. “If a dangerous illegal alien felon were to flee into a school, or a child sex offender is working as an employee, there may be a situation where an arrest is made to protect public safety.”