Sanctuary?

No, yours truly has never seen the TV show depicted above, and doubts he ever will. But it is described as the story of a team that is engaged in "guarding the peace of the citizens, investigat(ing) and track(ing) down various supernatural creatures that somehow penetrated and invaded our world."* So it has a certain resonance to recent events in the polity.

In any event, ex officio Regent and Lieutenant Governor Newsom - running for governor - has called on all three California higher ed segments to declare themselves "sanctuary campuses" and so far both the UC prez and the CSU chancellor have been cautious about using the term**. First, there is the matter of UC funding that comes from the federal government - about which we have previously blogged.*** Second, as a practical manner, ICE agents can come on campuses, although campus police do not have to participate in their activities. Student records are private under federal law, although you would have consult a legal beagle to determine whether federal law blocks the federal government itself from access. In any case, it is federal law - which can be changed by Congress. There may be state laws involved, too, but what might override what... Who knows? Again, you need to consult a legal beagle.

Note - as our previous post of an email exchange at Anderson illustrated - terms such as "safe" and "sanctuary" nowadays come loaded with symbolism.**** It might be better to avoid symbols and instead take practical steps, including investigation of the legal issues noted above. Assuring students of "safety" that can't be provided would be a disservice, despite the impetus of a gubernatorial campaign.

Finally, there could be threats to academia that go beyond immigration issues and beyond students. There was a forum held at UCLA on Nov. 10, reacting to the election. You can see it below. Yours truly especially recommends listening to the brief remarks of Professor of Law Eugene Volokh which start at about 1:23 (1 hour & 23 minutes) into the forum. (Note: the audio throughout the entire video is terrible so listen carefully.)

---
*http://toptvshows.me/sanctuary/sanctuary-season-1-4
**http://www.politico.com/states/california/story/2016/11/proposal-turn-californias-massive-public-higher-ed-system-into-sanctuary-campuses-to-stop-trump-107463 and http://www.dailynews.com/social-affairs/20161117/csu-chancellor-says-campuses-will-remain-safe-for-illegal-immigrants-but-not-sanctuaries
***http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2016/11/recalculating-at-oakland.html
****http://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2016/11/safe.html