• By Aurelio M. Montemayor, M.Ed. • March 2025 •
At a recent school board meeting, two high school seniors took the podium during the community input session. Adrian Lara and Zariah Bermudez urged the board to take a strong stance in protecting immigrant students by ensuring their safety from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) intrusion and preventing the unauthorized sharing of students’ personal information.
Adrian told the board: “I heard a story about a student from Jefferson who went to school, and while he was there, the principal informed him that his parents had been deported. Although this is a unique story to SAISD, I feel that NEISD board hasn’t provided necessary resources such as counselor support to students that are feeling affected by deportation in their family.”
The San Antonio students emphasized that schools should be a safe space for all students, free from external threats. They requested permission for students to gather signatures for petitions during lunch and other non-instructional times specifically in support of immigrant students and their families.
“As developing adults, we are learning the different ways we are using our voice for change,” Zariah said.
Their speeches at the February 10 North East ISD Board of Trustees meeting were met with enthusiastic applause from the audience. After the meeting, they were interviewed by a Spanish-language TV station. Their families, teachers and community supporters were also present, reinforcing the deep personal and collective commitment to this cause.
Following the board meeting, the students, their families, teachers and community members gathered at a local coffeehouse to celebrate the moment and strengthen their organizing efforts. They expressed gratitude for IDRA’s community of practice space, Cafecito y MAS, which has provided critical support for their advocacy.
IDRA has been hosting the informal Cafecito y MAS gatherings for teachers, students, families, community members and others interested in ethnic studies, social justice and civil rights. In January, Adrian and Zariah’s teacher encouraged them to attend as they work to revive a Mexican American studies student organization, now rebranded as Mayonesa (Mexican American Youth Organization, North East San Antonio).
As students and teachers planned ways to amplify student voices, they discussed the federal initiative to deport more immigrants and the concern about ICE agents being allowed to operate in schools. Adrian and Zariah decided to do something.
They first wrote a Petition for Educational Justice, stating: “We are encouraging the North East ISD Board of Education to adopt a resolution ensuring that the right to education is not prohibited based on a student’s immigration status. We request the district to enforce protections that declare the district a safe zone for its students, meaning that the district is a place for students to learn, thrive, seek assistance, information and support relating to any immigration law enforcement that interferes with their learning experience.”
After gaining about 100 student signatures during the school period, they were instructed to stop by the school administration. That’s when they decided to speak to the board. They wrote their statements, practiced and courageously spoke before an overflow crowd.
While a potential policy change or statement by the North East ISD board (beyond the superintendent’s recent letter to parents and staff) may be largely symbolic, this student-led initiative sends a clear message: immigrant students matter, and their peers are standing in solidarity with them. This movement is just beginning, and the students of Mayonesa are determined to keep organizing for justice in their schools and beyond.
See related article: Adrian and Zariah Reflect on Their Activism and Concerns
[© 2025, IDRA. Permission to reproduce this article is granted provided the article is reprinted in its entirety and proper credit is given to IDRA and the author.]
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