Montgomery County PTA hosts ICE response training session for families

Parent Teacher Association officials in one of the wealthiest school districts in the country hosted a training session last month instructing families on how to respond to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity.

The virtual PTA session in Montgomery County, Maryland, was held on Jan. 20 and was headed by Councilwoman Kristin Mink. The meeting was titled “ICE Response & Organizing Tools for PTAs, Parents & Guardians.” 

According to the National Review, Mink has previously hosted multiple sessions on ways schools can equip themselves with “tools to slow ICE down and protect each other.” The training guided parents on how to escort students with illegal immigrant parents, and encouraged volunteers to monitor ICE activity during drop‑off and pickup, and introduced ways to support families affected by ICE arrests and deportations.

During the session, Mink reportedly presented comprehensive “rapid response” guidance she had created and shared publicly three days earlier. 

In one slide, Mink outlined how “White allies” could assist and support the community, advising them not to use whistles to counter “ICE violence,” which has become a widespread form of community resistance. She argued that White individuals should avoid using a tool that, in her view, reinforces authority associated with Whiteness.

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“Especially for White allies, whistles can represent a subconscious desire for authority, protection, or control in moments of crisis,” the slide said. 

“But rapid response is not about assuming authority. . . . When we question decisions made by those impacted, we risk centering our own comfort instead of impacted people.”

She added that “What feels ‘activating’ or empowering to some can cause stress to others,” noting that “Black and Brown communities are already overexposed to chronic noise pollution due to racist zoning, redlining, and disinvestment.”

She further addressed, in the slide, how certain characteristics — such as gender, sexuality, and education — align with positions of power or marginalization.

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Last September, the Department of Homeland Security clarified that, contrary to what it described as “fearmongering” by sanctuary politicians, “ICE is not conducting enforcement operations at, or ‘raiding,’ schools.”

Mink’s presentation aligns with a recent wave within the anti-ICE movement, where immigrant-led organizations clashed with predominantly White “rapid response” activists over the use of whistles during immigration raids. Groups like the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network (WAISN) and Maryland-based coalitions argue that blowing whistles is a “White Savior” tactic that creates unnecessary panic and escalates tension.

The Jan. 20 meeting sparked further controversy, with critics arguing that parent-teacher organizations should prioritize academic success rather than engaging in political activism.

“It goes without saying, PTAs should focus on their original intent: students — not injecting inflammatory and divisive political rhetoric into the community,” Kendall Tietz, investigative reporter at Defending Education, told the National Review.

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The online presentation was promoted by and advertised on the Montgomery County Council of PTAs’ social media. According to the online sign-up sheet, several agencies supported the information session, including education associations, labor unions and immigration advocacy organizations. 

Many local PTAs also promoted the session on their official platforms, including those at Gaithersburg Middle School, Laytonsville Elementary School, and Stedwick Elementary School.