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Border Patrol job recruiters were the focus of an animated march Tuesday on the grounds of Seattle University, where a law enforcement student job fair played host to the Department of Homeland Security’s armed force.
Students groups from the University of Washington, Seattle University, and Seattle Central used chalk drawings and street theater to highlight the recruiters’ presence; campus security estimated that 25 students took part.
In a press statement before the event, students Matt Hitchman and Marianne Mork said border agents “instill fear and provide an unsafe environment for many workers and students at Seattle University. By expanding militarization of the United States-Mexico border, the Border Patrol has increased risk and death for people migrating to the U.S., and additionally fails to address the root causes of migration.”
Fifteen state, local, and federal law enforcement and corrections agencies were represented at the career fair, says Seattle U. criminal justice professor Elaine Dennison. Among them was the FBI, Transportation Safety Administration, the State Department of Corrections, the State Patrol, and the police departments of Seattle, Everett, Bothell, and Port Angeles.
The march only required campus security once, says Dennison: Two protesters carried a banner into the job fair and for a few minutes read into a bullhorn the names of people killed immigrating to the United States. Dennison said campus security escorted them out — and that the Border Patrol’s representative comported himself well.
“The feedback I got from other agencies was that the officer did an excellent job handling what could have been a really confrontational situation,” she says.
University spokesperson Melanie Apostol says campus officials welcomed the marchers. “We’re supportive of our students expressing their opinions on issues that matter, as long as they conduct themselves in a respectful manner.”
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