MAJOR UPDATE!!! ARIZONA ATTORNEY GENERAL KRIS MAYES HAS FILED A FEDERAL LAWSUIT AGAINST DHS!
On April 24th, AG Mayes held a press conference outside the ICE detention warehouse here in Surprise. I was beyond honored that she invited me to speak so I could talk about the impact this is already having on students at my school and let people know about this petition. She announced that her office filed a federal lawsuit against DHS for violating the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Immigration and Nationality Act.
I didn't find out about the chemical storage warehouse until just a few days ago. After the press conference, my mom asked Chris Judd, our city council member, how a hazardous chemical storage company got approved right next to our school and neighborhoods. He told her the Surprise City Council had no choice because of something called "use by right." When I started as a freshman at Dysart High School, there were no warehouses around here. It was all just empty fields. Then suddenly they started popping up everywhere. Obviously no one took the students or the residents into consideration in any of these decisions. The whole thing is a huge mess and people need to be fired over this.
I also want to give a huge shoutout to Lynne Gehling. She is a Surprise resident who I personally know from all the city council meetings I've spoken at. She is the one who discovered the chemical company being right across the street and found out that their emergency plan was submitted before DHS purchased the warehouse. Thank you Lynne!