On Sept. 26 the Superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools, Dr. Ian Roberts, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. A statement made by ICE shortly after his arrest claimed that Roberts was issued a “final order of removal” in May 2024 and alleged that Roberts fled the scene when he was pulled over by ICE officers with $3,000 cash, a hunting knife and a firearm in his car.
Roberts was not kidnapped by ICE because he is a danger to students. He was kidnapped as part of the Trump administration racist anti-DEI, anti-immigrant narrative and as part of a larger crusade to assert control over schools and universities.
‘He was a pillar in our community’
The community rallied outside of the Federal Building in Des Moines on the day of Roberts’ arrest and returned to rally later in the week demanding his immediate release. Students across Des Moines have organized walk-outs, demanding Roberts’ release and ICE out of Iowa.
As one student organizer said, “He was a pillar in our community who advocated for every single one of us. He made us feel supported, but he didn’t abolish our opinions. He talked about radical empathy … If someone is going against our own human rights, that shouldn’t be allowed … All of us deserve to be here!”
At the time of writing, Roberts is still in ICE custody. He was forced to resign from his position as the superintendent of DMPS less than a week after he was detained.
An attack on public schools
Roberts is the first Black man and first person of color to serve as superintendent of Iowa’s largest and most diverse public school district. He was born in Guyana, but has lived in the United States for decades. He has had an extensive career as a principal and superintendent, working in school districts across the country.
In DMPS, as of the 2023-2024 school year, only 3.3% of public school teachers in Iowa were people of color, while 68.9% of students are people of color. Yet, in addition to arresting it’s superintendent, the Department of Justice has announced an investigation into DMPS’ hiring practices. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon has cited equal employment and affirmative action measures enacted by the district as the basis for this investigation.
Local and national news outlets are not asking how a devoted educator could be kidnapped off of the streets of Des Moines. Instead, most news coverage has treated the statement provided by ICE as fact and depicted Roberts as a criminal. They are creating consensus for ICE’s criminalization of Roberts and for the narrative that the crux of the issue is DMPS’ “careless” hiring procedures.
ICE operations expand across Iowa
Meanwhile, attacks on immigrants in Iowa are increasing. As of June, ICE had already made more than 450 arrests here. A day before Roberts was taken into custody a grocery store employee, Jorge Elieser Gonzalez Ochoa, was violently detained at his place of work in downtown Iowa City. In July, Pascual Pedro of West Liberty, Iowa, was detained and deported when he showed up for his annual appointment with ICE. The 20-year-old graduate of West Liberty High School and local soccer star had been living in West Liberty for seven years prior to being deported to Guatemala.
In the wake of these attacks, organizers with PSL Iowa have been collaborating with other local organizations, such as Escucha Mi Voz and Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice and Central Iowa DSA to defend and protect the immigrant community. This includes organizing know your rights training, rapid responses through an ICE hotline and accompanying neighbors to their appointments at immigration offices.
Feature photo: Community members rally in Des Moines, Iowa, to demand the release of Dr. Ian Roberts the day after he was arrested. Liberation photo
