WMU Job Fair Moves Forward After CBP Pulls Out

There have been heavy concerns from many residents over U.S. Customs and Border Protection and ICE, over the actions that have taken place over the past few months. This is why many in Kalamazoo were concerned when CBP was listed as one of the recruiters who would be appearing at the Western Michigan University job fair on February 3.

Now looks like they have pulled out of the job fair after redacting its registration last week.

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CBP was never asked to attend, nor encouraged to pull out, according to the university, but the residents of Southwest Michigan were not going to wait, as a massive protest was held in downtown Kalamazoo on Monday, January 26.

According to Wood TV, as soon as their attendance was public knowledge, that's when the Kalamazoo Visibility Brigade stepped up and put the word out to send voices of concern to the college, according to an email they sent to the TV8:

On Sunday night, the brigade took to Facebook to encourage WMU employees, alumni and Kalamazoo community members to contact university offices by phone and email to demand that they cancel the group’s registration. An email template outlined concerns over Border Patrol and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations.

The template that was sent out didn't hold back their feelings on the recent actions of the agency:

WMU should not be a platform for agencies whose operations have been associated with violence, rights abuses, and lethal outcomes for civilians. I urge you to take immediate action and ensure that Western Michigan University remains a space of learning, refuge, and opportunity — not complicity.

It may be a coincidence that CBP announced they would not be coming, one day after this email sweep took place, but it looks like the job fair can expect to go off without any issues or concerns.