Hi everyone! Here is my interview from yesterday on the NPR 1A podcast. My segment is at the 34 minute mark. But definitely listen to the entire podcast because it has a lot of important information.

NPR 1A podcast: What It Means To Have An ICE Detention Center In Your Backyard

Washington Post reporter, Doug MacMillan, was also on the podcast. He said that DHS has been feeding local city leaders around the country talking points to say to residents who oppose the detention centers.

Is Mayor Kevin Sartor repeating DHS talking points in the interviews he's suddenly been giving the media lately? He started doing these interviews at the same time he announced that the city has an open line of communication with DHS. Are they telling him what to say?

If so, then that is extremely concerning to me and here's why:

- I met with Rep. Paul Gosar's staff to discuss our safety concerns. All of them were dismissed as hypotheticals. This ICE detention center is in his district. Someone already tried to set it on fire and it's not even open yet.

- I also met with the Mayor Sartor last week. He told me there is no safety plan for students who have to go past this detention center in order to get to and from school. We will have to figure out on our own how to navigate around a federal jail that will have heavy, nonstop traffic along with protestors, media, arsonists, etc.

Kevin Sartor isn't just the Mayor of Surprise. He's also the Safety Coordinator for Dysart School District. It is HIS job to keep the students of Dysart High School safe. Right now, we do not feel safe having him as our Safety Coordinator and we definitely won't feel safe once the detention center opens.

- Our school did not have our first shelter in place drill until March 13th. That means every single freshman at my school had no idea what to do if our school had an active shelter in place from July 31st until March 13th. 

- We haven't had ANY lockdown drills at all this year. Again, if you're a freshman at Dysart High School, you currently have no idea what to do during a school lockdown thanks to the Mayor.

If the same people who are responsible for student safety at Dysart High School 1) aren't taking our safety concerns seriously about the ICE detention center, 2) aren't making sure our school is doing the mandatory safety drills required, 2) have no safety plan for students once this detention center opens, and 3) are just repeating DHS talking points then that means they are politicizing our safety.

Rep. Paul Gosar, Mayor Kevin Sartor, and Dysart School District, if something happens to a student once this opens, whose fault will it be?

I think I know the answer.

____________

We've reached 4,000 signatures! If you haven't already, please sign and share it. Every signature matters: www.3milebuffer.com

Sincerely,

Cali Overs

Student Body Vice President

Dysart High School