Last week, Arizona State University (ASU) activists held a training on how to evade immigration authorities.
This next crop of budding ASU activists — following in the footsteps of their predecessors organizing the ongoing protests-turned-riots against immigration enforcement — were part of Aliento at ASU.
The “Know Your Rights” workshop instructed attendees on identifying ICE vehicles, familiarizing the types of warrants required of ICE, and collecting proper immigration papers and lawyer contacts.
Last month, Aliento at ASU led protests against a tabling event by College Republicans United (CRU) at ASU guiding students on reporting illegal aliens to immigration authorities. Aliento at ASU’s protest prompted CRU to shut down its event.
Reporting crimes is not only a civic duty but also a fundamental for maintaining public safety and the rule of law. Law agencies rely on the public to effectively address unlawful activities, and providing information through legal channels is an essential part of that process.
— College Republicans United at Arizona State (@ASU_CRU) January 31, 2025
Aliento at ASU later called on ASU to punish CRU and to prohibit ICE from entering university campuses without a judicial warrant.
“While free speech is a protected right, speech that incites fear, discrimination, and encourages harassment should not be tolerated,” said Aliento. “ASU has a responsibility to ensure that all students, regardless of their immigration status, can pursue their education in an environment free from intimidation and harassment.”
ASU issued a statement maintaining CRU members’ free speech rights, though the university admonished the organization for encouraging “indiscriminate complaints” to immigration authorities and accused the organization of capitalizing on a hot-button political issue for social media attention.
“Encouraging ASU students to make indiscriminate complaints to law enforcement about fellow students is not in keeping with the principles which underlie our academic community. We are here to teach and learn — not to engage in self-aggrandizing conduct meant solely to generate as much media attention and controversy as possible,” stated ASU. “But we must also recognize that we live in a country that protects individual free speech, even speech that is hurtful.”
Aliento at ASU’s focus on preventing immigration enforcement comes from the fact that many of its members are “Dreamers”: illegal aliens given a temporary reprieve from deportation under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Per Aliento’s social media bio, the club also accepts “undocumented and mixed-status students.”
Aliento at ASU emerged from the pro-illegal immigration organization Aliento, founded in 2016 by a DACA recipient and ASU graduate, Reyna Montoya. Aliento at ASU came along in 2018. Montoya and her organization have received funding from dark money giant George Soros.
Thanks to the efforts of Aliento, Arizona also now allows illegal immigrants to collect on in-state tuition rates and financial aid.
Last month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upheld a prior ruling declaring DACA to be unlawful. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) continues to accept and process DACA renewal requests and employment authorizations, but won’t process initial DACA requests currently. Current DACA recipients may enjoy their authorization until expiration.
In 2018, USCIS reported it had approved approximately 54,000 illegal aliens with criminal records (excluding arrests for apprehensions) for DACA out of the over 770,000 beneficiaries.
The Obama administration implemented DACA in 2012.