TAMPA, Fla. – Current and former students of Berkeley Preparatory School are calling for the condemnation of the policies causing the separation of children from their families at the U.S.-Mexico border.
The letter sent to headmaster Joseph Seivold was written after the Secretary of Homeland Security and Berkeley alum Kirstjen Nielsen defended the policy.
The letter is signed by almost 500 current and former student, faculty and staff. It calls for people to take action, stating:
“Our power lies in our money, time, and positioning. As students and graduates of Berkeley Preparatory School, we:
1. Pledge our dollars to RAICES Texas, an organization committed to providing free and low-income legal services to underserved immigrant children, families, and refugees, which you can donate to here;
2. Dedicate our time to causes that advance the wellbeing of people across the world, especially immigrants;
3. Use our positioning to call on our peer, Kirstjen Nielsen, to cease the practice of separating children from their families, or resign. We also call on Berkeley’s leadership to join us and practice what you teach: Make a positive difference. Use your privilege for good.”
Berkeley Preparatory School issued the following statement on the letter to Seivold:
"Berkeley Preparatory School is a diverse community comprised of many thousands of students, families, employees, alumni and alumni parents. The school is mission-driven to provide the best possible environment for the intellectual, emotional, spiritual and physical development of each student, and to instill in them a strong sense of morality, ethics, and social responsibility. As a school, Berkeley’s charge is not and cannot be to take a position on non-education-related governmental policy or action; it is to foster the confidence and build the critical thinking skills of our students so that they may do so."
On Tuesday night, a group of protestors interrupted Nielsen's dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Washington, D.C.
Members of the D.C. chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America entered MXDC Cocina Mexicana, a glitzy restaurant near the White House, to confront Nielsen as her department faces scrutiny over a policy that has resulted in some children being separated from their parents at the U.S-Mexico border.
The video continues with protesters chanting and making various speeches as Nielsen and another diner sit nearby. The video ends before either side leaves the restaurant.
Editor's Note: USA Today contributed to this story.
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