Betsy DeVos immigration comments are a new low that could keep citizens out of school Betsy DeVos would let schools call immigration officials on undocumented kids. That's cruel and bad for America. It could even keep citizens out of class.

Linda Valdez | The Republic | azcentral.com

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos sees public education as an arm of Donald Trump’s deportation machine. That's not surprising.

Children have been fair game in this administration since Trump went after "DREAMers." DeVos aimed low enough to hit kindergarten kids — including those born in this country.

Critics want her to resign or apologize. Both would be welcome, but neither would undo the damage.

The victims of this latest spasm of nastiness will include U.S. citizen children, as well as their undocumented parents and siblings.

When DeVos said schools should decide whether to call immigration officials on undocumented students, she revealed an ignorance of the Plyler v. Doe Supreme Court decision that says any child in the country can go to school. She also unleashed fears that will grow and undermine the peace of mind of families across the country.

This goes beyond the sheer meanness of attacking little kids who are learning their ABCs. In the zeal to deny an education to innocent children just because they are undocumented, Trump’s not-so-great America will bludgeon the rights of U.S. citizens.

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Undocumented parents of U.S. citizen children will now see schools as little less safe. A little more risky. Many families include undocumented members as well as U.S.-born children. Schools have been a place where all were protected. Where this nation's commitment to education was honored.

Trump's administration is creating a national atmosphere where parents have to wonder if keeping kids home from school is the best way to protect the family. This serves no one — except the core Trump supporter who delights in vilifying and dehumanizing undocumented immigrants.

Where does that leave the rest of us?

Most Republicans will stagger under one more blow to their collective decency from an administration that always finds a way to make them look even more spineless.

Democrats like Arizona’s Rep. Raúl Grijalva condemn the latest outrage and call for DeVos to resign or apologize.

“She's already proven that she wants to dismantle our public schools, but now we are using as cannon fodder the very children that the Constitution and Supreme Court said are protected and have equal access and equal rights,” Grijalva said.

Grijalva was one of several Congressional Hispanic Caucus members, along with immigration advocates from UnidosUS, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF), who held a news conference to blast DeVos.

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There is a lot at stake when the people in power treat children as the enemy.

The Supreme Court put it well in the Plyler decision, saying "education has a fundamental role in maintaining the fabric of our society" because it “provides the basic tools by which individuals might lead economically productive lives to the benefit of us all."

The court also pointed out that the children of undocumented parents “can affect neither their parents' conduct nor their own status,” and that punishing a child for the parents’ actions “does not comport with fundamental conceptions of justice.”

Neither DeVos nor Trump show any desire to comport with fundamental conceptions of justice. Ignorance of our nation’s commitment to decency is the hallmark of this administration.

Even so, this assault on little school kids is a new low. The lingering fear it creates will reverberate in ripples of shame across our nation of immigrants.

Linda Valdez is an opinion writer for the Arizona Republic, where this column first appeared. Follow her on Twitter: @valdezlinda