KING: WA Gov. Bob Ferguson signs executive order in preparation for potential 'mass deportations'

[Dennis Donovan]

KING - WA Gov. Bob Ferguson signs executive order in preparation for potential 'mass deportations'

Gov. Bob Ferguson said President Donald Trump's immigration policies will "destabilize families" and harm children.

Author: Helen Smith
Published: 12:16 PM PST January 27, 2025
Updated: 1:51 PM PST January 27, 2025

SEATTLE — Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson is preparing for potential family separations amid the fallout of President Donald Trump's sweeping immigration enforcement.

Ferguson signed an executive order on Monday that creates a rapid response team intended to support children who are separated from their parents or caregivers, should they be detained or deported.

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At a press conference, Ferguson announced that the new rapid response team is comprised of professionals within the Department of Children, Youth and Family Services, the Washington State Patrol, the Office of Refugee and Immigrant Assistance, the Attorney General's Office and members of the Governor's Office. They will develop policies aimed at supporting children whose parents or caregivers are deported or detained by ICE.

Ferguson outlined priorities for the new team, including:

• Review agency policies and procedures to identify any changes that can assist in responding to the separation of families. This includes situations where a large number of children in the same geographic area may be separated from their parents or caregivers at the same time.
• Identify policies or procedures that may help support children of deported or detained parents and lessen, to the extent possible, the lasting impacts resulting from such separation, in consultation with immigration and child welfare experts.
• Meet with the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) and local school districts to develop strategies for mitigating disruption to the education and development of children whose parents are deported or detained.
• Create proactive lines of communication between DCYF, OSPI and local school districts to permit quick and responsive action when prompt cooperation is needed to support the child, including if a child’s parents are taken for deportation or detention while the child is at school.
• Work with state universities, colleges, community colleges and Running Start to ensure and support robust pathways to higher education for children who experience the trauma of having their parents or primary caregivers deported or detained.

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[Wounded Bear]

1. K&R...

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

2. Flanked by immigrants, Governor Bob Ferguson announces rapid response team to support children facing separation

Washington State won’t stand for Donald Trump’s cruel attacks on new American families and won’t sit idly by while the would-be dictator’s minions attempt to marshal federal resources for their planned intimidation campaigns and mass deportations.

That was the message delivered today at a lengthy rally and press conference hosted by El Centro de la Raza and organized by OneAmerica in Beacon Hill, where Governor Bob Ferguson announced the signing of a new executive order that directs state agencies to work together to mitigate harms caused by Trump’s threatened policies.

Ferguson’s Executive Order 25–04 authorizes the “immediate creation of a Family Separation Rapid Response Team in the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF). The team will recommended policies and actions for addressing family separation and the lasting effects on children,” in the words of the governor’s office.

“My administration will do everything possible to address the harms caused by a mass deportation and detention program,” Ferguson said. “That includes making sure kids who are torn away from their parents have someone to care for them and uninterrupted access to their education, regardless of their immigration status.”

https://www.nwprogressive.org/weblog/2025/01/flanked-by-immigrants-governor-bob-ferguson-announces-rapid-response-team-to-support-children-facing-separation.html