A Sanctuary Campus?

In recent months, so-called “sanctuary cities” have been brought to the political forefront. They are cities that refuse to comply with federal immigration laws. San Francisco is one example of a sanctuary city. When city law enforcement refused to cooperate with federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, a young woman named Kate Steinle was killed by an illegal immigrant who was freed. Now, liberal college students want to force their school to adopt sanctuary policies. A student group at Northeastern University called Huskies Organizing With Labor demanded that the school refuse to comply with any new immigration policies that President Trump may introduce.

However, these liberal students seem determined to drown out the ever-present nuisance of reality. The students want the university president to protect illegal immigrants who work in the university’s dining hall. However, the Northeastern president explained that he has no authority over dining hall workers because campus food service is contracted out to another company. This did not deter the student group. Never let it be said that reality got in the way of a liberal campus group on an ill-advised ideological mission.

This incident is more proof that many students have lost sight of the mission of universities like Northeastern. The purpose of a college education is to prepare young people for life in a professional field. A college does not have to cater to a student’s feelings, protect a student from opinions that he disagrees with, or provide a “safe space” on campus. Certainly, a college should not and cannot defy federal immigration authorities simply because they do not agree with the laws that they enforce.

America is a land where everyone is allowed to express their opinions openly, even when those views are contrary to the views of lawmakers. However, this freedom stops whenever someone acts in defiance of the laws of the United States. It is time for the students at Northeastern University to accept reality. Their attempt to make their college a sanctuary college will not un-elect President Trump and will not stifle the laws that he passes through the constitutional legislative process.

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