On Friday, more than 50 Goshen College students, faculty and staff gathered, despite the snowy conditions, to participate in a nationwide strike calling for justice after the fatal shootings in Minneapolis. The protesters gathered between 2 and 3 p.m. to express their belief of over-reach by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.

The event was organized hastily on Thursday by Eliza Alemán, a senior sustainability and history major. She said “I just felt so heavy [on Thursday] … I knew that the strike was happening [on Friday] and I also know that not everyone can afford to give up a whole day of work or a whole day of class.” Though Alemán’s organizing came at the last minute, participants arrived prepared to protest and wave hand-crafted signs.

Despite the short notice, Alemán was still able to pull support from several different parts of campus. Alemán enlisted Voces Fuertes, a student immigrant advocacy group; Latino Student Union; the Peace and Justice Collective who in turn recruited Anton Alstrom-Brookhyser, a sophomore music education major, to lead singing; all of whom showed their support for the cause through singing, chanting and speaking out.

Eliza Alemán speaking to the people gathered at Shrock Plaza.

Andrea Hernandez Amaro, a junior business major and Goshen native, said, “Seeing everybody come together as a community, it’s very relieving to see that others obviously don’t want this … We’re here together, in power, trying to resist everything that’s going on.”

Gabriella Trudel, a sophomore American Sign Language and theater major, expanded on Hernandez Amaro’s sentiment, connecting to her hometown of Cottage Grove, Minnesota. “I would love to be home and be part of the protests … It’s just really sad, everything that’s happening … I want to be a loud voice,” she said.

The student-organized event also coincides with a particularly strife time for Indiana, as on Jan. 26, the Indiana Senate passed Senate Bill 76. SB 76 expands penalties for interfering with ICE officers in Indiana. The American Civil Liberties Union explains the bill will “ban public institutions (including colleges) from limiting immigration enforcement activity, regardless of if it’s being carried out by local, state or federal forces, with $10,000 fines per violation.”

SB 76 would additionally require “taxpayer-funded legal defense for public agencies and personnel sued over immigration enforcement, even when the actions are legally questionable,” the ACLU summarizes. There is a lack of clarity as to how GC, a private college that receives federal and state grants, will be affected.

Hernandez Amaro brought up her concerns over the recent rulings: “This is a very personal topic for me, especially with what’s going on with immigration and ICE, how everything’s just getting progressively worse … The news that we’re hearing with Indiana, starting in February having more immigration coming is very very scary,” she said.

While there are still unknowns as to what the consequences SB 76 would be for Indiana residents, it has yet to pass in the Indiana House of Representatives, and will not be enacted until it does so. There is currently no publicly announced date for this vote in the House.

GC has also stated that they remain staunchly in support of students and student protection. Gilberto Pérez Jr., the vice president for student life and hispanic serving initiatives who is also the dean of students, provided insight into the lengths at which GC will go to protect all those who are on campus.

“Goshen College worked this last year to put in place a protocol if federal law enforcement or any other law enforcement officials would come to campus seeking to detain a student or an employee. Our protocol includes designated private spaces across campus such as residence halls and private rooms in buildings. It is our understanding that federal law enforcement officials need to present a signed judicial warrant before detaining an individual,” he said.

Both Hernandez Amaro and Trudel see more protests in the future for GC, but Alemán suggested that on-campus clubs or organizations could have a better handle on putting together further protests. “I organized this more as a quick call to action, and I love organizing and advocacy but … I feel there are other GC organizations that could pull that off with a lot more people. I would love to be helping any way I can,” Alemán said.

Pérez Jr. also made sure to convey the message that all is not hopeless, as he mentioned several bills in the Indiana legislature that protect undocumented people from persecution. He also mentioned the ongoing conversation between the college and local law enforcement to cooperate and help students to live and learn safely while on campus.

He said, “Our position at Goshen College is and will always be to provide safety to our campus community. We acknowledge that the current climate is causing fear within the immigrant community and in the community in general. Goshen College will continue to stand with our undocumented students. ”

In response to the specific concerns of students about the deaths in Minnesota, Pérez Jr. said, “[GC] laments the incidents that impact the lives of immigrants and non-immigrants, especially when lives are lost. We continue to connect with our locally elected officials, state officials and federal officials stating that we desire to create an educational space where all of our students feel safe and can thrive.”