Greetings,

On March 8, 2025, Mahmoud Khalil, a student organizer at Columbia University, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in his university-owned apartment building. According to a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, Khalil was targeted for his pro-Palestinian organizing efforts on campus. Around 6:30 a.m. on February 26, 2026, ICE agents entered an on-campus residence hall at Columbia. The agents impersonated New York Police Department officers, claiming to be searching for a missing person. They entered the building without a judicial warrant and arrested a student, Ellie Aghayeva.

Towson University students fear that they could be targeted by illegal “drag net” raids performed by ICE. The agency has been empowered by the Supreme Court to treat ethnic identities and native languages as probable cause for detention in crowded facilities. Video evidence has shown abusive treatment in ICE’s downtown Baltimore facility at the George H. Fallon Federal Building where some detainees have reported beatings. Detainees have been denied access to proper food, water, sanitation, medical care, contact with loved ones, and due process. Legionella, the waterborne bacteria responsible for the potentially fatal Legionnaires’ disease, has been detected at the facility.

Fear of detention discourages students from expressing themselves and their cultures. Student fears are not only motivated by such videos and allegations, they are also spurred by their own anecdotes of loved ones having been harassed or detained by ICE. The stress caused by the actions of the federal government and complicity from state and local leadership will negatively impact the campus community. To alleviate this stress, we are demanding that the leadership of Towson University make it clear to all students, faculty, and staff that this institution will do all they can to protect the student body in these dangerous times.

Towson University prides itself on the diversity of its student body. More than half of Towson students belong to racial and/or ethnic minorities. Students deserve assurance that federal agents will not kidnap them without resistance from the university. As university leaders, you have a responsibility to be transparent regarding policies and safeguards concerning federal immigration enforcement activities on campus. Key concerns from students, faculty, and staff have not been addressed.

Towson University must make a statement affirming their responsibility to protect immigrant students. Policy should be implemented to ensure campus staff and police are trained in the necessary measures in the event of an on-campus raid or detention, and that they will not cooperate with ICE or any other federal immigration enforcement agency. We urge Towson to take preparatory actions to protect at-risk students, faculty, and staff on campus. Information about the legal rights of both immigrants and citizens during interactions with authorities should be clearly communicated to students, faculty, and staff by the university. Communication channels should be created to alert the campus community of any federal immigration enforcement activity in or around campus and should be regularly updated. Failure to implement these measures would risk the physical safety of all members of the campus community.

We look forward to seeing where your priorities lie.

Our Demands

1. Mandatory training for all university employees on federal law enforcement policies and what to do if they see federal agents engaging in immigration enforcement on campus. The content must include but not be limited to:
   a) 06-24.00 – Policy on Law Enforcement Access to Non-Public Spaces
   b) Guidance Regarding Federal Law Enforcement Access to University Spaces
   c) Know Your Rights training focusing on protections from unlawful search and seizure
   
2. Establish emergency protocol to keep immigrants safe in the event of federal agents engaging in immigration enforcement, including:
   a) Emergency notifications to be issued if and when federal law enforcement agencies bring warrants to the Towson University Police Department (TUPD) and/or the Towson University Office of General Counsel
   b) Update the TUPD emergency text and email alert system as well as the Community Safety Dashboard to alert the university community to federal immigration enforcement activity on campus or within the surrounding community
   
3. A central webpage where all immigration-related policies and resources are posted, including but not limited to:
   a) Know Your Rights information on protection from unlawful search and seizure in the case of federal immigration enforcement activity on campus
   b) The content of the trainings referenced in the first demand
   c) Policy 06-24.00
   d) Guidance Regarding Federal Law Enforcement Access to University Spaces
   e) A record of past incidents on campus involving federal immigration enforcement activity
   f) Announcements communicating policy and/or website changes
   
4. A public statement outlining Policy 06-24.00 and committing to noncooperation with federal immigration enforcement agencies
   
5. Meeting with President Ginsberg and SVP/General Counsel Shea to occur by April 3.